Hermes' Apprentice
by Orihara Izaya
Summary: Forced to work under Hermes, Tohru has to participate in a game. According to Hermes' orders he has only six months to destroy the efforts of the other participants and win against the other gods.
1. I am Hermes

_Welcome and thanks for reading the first chapter of the story, I hope that you will find this story interesting enough to follow. The idea came to me few months ago when I first discovered that there was a category for Greek mythology. Being a Greek myself, I was always fascinated by our myths and legends, Hermes is my favourite Olympian god since childhood as well. The story though takes place in Japan, which I hope won't drive anyone away, since I consider it to be more interesting because of the differences and similarities in culture and mindset between the people of both countries._

_I'd like to say sorry in advance for my grammar and I hope that this time I did my best more than usual to correct my misspells. Maybe I should have found a beta reader beforehand but it would be too difficult to approach someone without having at least one chapter published._

_Enjoy_.

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><p>A town in midnight can be scary and dangerous, especially when the town is really big. The streets of Tokyo, the famous capital of Japan, were no exception. The ugly side of the town was there to be seen by those who were cast aside by society. Drugs, prostitution, theft; an image that is not loved by the public media and a society who turns a blind eye to it.<p>

Tohru had come to learn that side of the city the hard way. The sound of his running steps were echoing in the alleys, his feet were splashing into the mud puddles. From time to time, he was taking a peek over his shoulder anxiously. Not far behind, two men were chasing him spouting threats. He knew very well what they were going to do in case they managed to catch him; there was no need for them to say anything.

His eyes were scanning the area. He had to find a place to hide before his energy runs out. The streets can be cruel and cold, with no place to hide and ensure yourself, thus you end up playing in a survival game of hide-seek until you manage to hide or let yourself get eaten. He had managed to execute everything perfectly for more than once, he had managed to escape many times as well -and unharmed the most of them, too- but he guessed that that time he wouldn't be able to make it. His legs were ready to betray him and he was lucky that the bullets had missed him.

He had reached an area he wasn't familiar with, rendering him unable to come up with some short of plan and then he made the mistake he was trying to avoid for about two hours. A dead end; maybe that was a sign that everything had come to an end. Turning back was not an option; he would end up with a bullet between his eyes while doing so. Tohru rested his back on a wall and let himself glide down the cold, wet, rough surface of it.

"There is now way Ι can climb this wall," he tittered. "That's it for me I guess. It was about time. I was getting tired."

He knew very well that his power was running out, he didn't want to get shot from behind like a fool while he would desperately try to climb that wall. He snickered at his own thought. After all that time his pride hadn't died, rather it had stayed too untainted for his own good, even after crawling through mud and sinking his hands into dung. No, he had lost his pride long ago, he was just clinging on something **he** named pride.

He could hear their angry voices getting closer and closer. The sound of their footsteps was repetitive and dull, they should have already sensed that they had trapped their pray. He smiled and titled his head to the side. He wasn't really regretting his life until that moment, he was a great player in this survival game called life and he'd played his role with all his essence.

"I wonder if I'll go to hell...That's how it should be. I'm not good enough for Heaven," he chuckled ready to give up.

And then the strangest thing happened. Before his tired eyes, a gold butterfly appeared. Confused, he couldn't help but wonder if he'd started hallucinating due to his fatigue. But the butterfly was there, fluttering around him and he, puzzled, was following its movements.

"For a man ready to die, you are very easily distracted," a voice pierced the air. "Shouldn't you be busy enough with philosophical questions about heaven and hell, what is life and all those related deep questions?"

Tohru flinched. He could see a silhouette looming. He hadn't sensed that man until he spoke. He, also, couldn't estimate the time that stranger was there and strangely enough the voices of the two men had abated. But, if those two were gone, maybe he had a hope left in an one-on-one battle, he was still carrying his knife with him.

"Not a chance. A petty knife won't harm me," the man said.

His hand started to tremble before it reaches his pocket. How did that man read his move, he couldn't figure it out. How did he even know that he was trying to get his knife? He had tried not to act too suspiciously either. Tohru tried to stood up, anxious by the radical turn of the situation.

"No-no-no, no need to be formal, I like to look down on humans," the man said and gestured Tohru to sit with his left hand.

However Tohru was distracted enough to miss the gesture. The rather unusual, golden butterfly was shining, fluttering around the stranger and she finally rested on the left hand that man had raised earlier. Tohru let out a gasp and pressed himself hard on the wall.

"Not much of a man, are we, Tohru?" the man asked and brought his left hand close to his face.

Tohru was finally able to take a glimpse of him. He was rather handsome; the light wasn't bright enough, but he could see his long, light brown hair waving with the breeze. His green eyes were very lively, he was emitting vitality and confidence. The man was looking at him directly into his eyes, with a sly smile on his face.

"Who are you? Why do you know my name?"  
>"Oh, how ruuuude of me. I forgot to introduce my self," he said.<p>

The tone of his voice was sarcastic, yet his voice was very clear. It was obvious to him that that man knew very well that he had the upper-hand and that it would be way too hard for him to run away. On the top of that he was neither able to explain the shining butterfly and the fact that the man knew his name nor how he was able to read his movements so easily.

"My name is Hermes," he said after a short pause.  
>"So, you are a foreigner."<br>"That should be already obvious considering my features," he replied to his comment sighing.  
>"So, what do you want from me? What did you do to those two?"<br>"Oh, I guess my name doesn't ring a bell," he said. "Let's do it your way. Here; my business card."

Tohru took the business card looking at him cautiously. He could hardly read it in the dark, but the light coming from the strange butterfly was helping a bit. Though, seeing the words written on the business card that man presented, he thought this couldn't be anything but a bad joke.

"Hermes. The ancient Greek God? Seriously?" he laughed.  
>"At your service."<p>

He was convinced that it wasn't his lucky day. Whether he had escaped from those two or not, he still had a lunatic right in front of him. Considering that their voices stopped since that man appeared, it wouldn't be crazy to say that he might have killed them already, or that he was the one who had sent them after him. In both cases he was in a big trouble.

"You are Hermes, the Greek God," Tohru repeated looking at him with obvious disbelief.  
>"Actually, I don't like to repeat my self, but yes. Hermes, the Greek God ruling over fortune, good luck, transport, roads, merchants, speed, intelligence, medicine, travels, measuring, astronomy, and a lot of other things... I'm an awesome God, I rule over many things, people loved me. <em>I also rule over gambling, mischief, lies and thieve, too and I'm also the guide of the underworld, but don't let those get into you.<em>"  
>"Okay, almighty Hermes," Tohru said deciding that playing along was the wisest thing to do. "What brings you here?"<p>

The so-called Hermes looked at him silently for a moment. That man had the sliest smile Tohru had ever seen in his life... but Tohru's patience was running out, he wanted to run away from there and rest, that man was giving him the creeps by every passing moment. Hermes finally snickered and decided to speak.

"You are funny. I think that you are qualified for the job," he said.  
>"I don't understand."<br>"Let's see," he said making a gesture. "Yoshida Tohru, 22 years old. An underground informant – this sounds so uncool man– master of infiltration. Has been hospitalized twice in an underground clinic due to serious injury. Father diseased. Mother alive and kicking, 53 years old, recently remarried. Still a virgin, _seriously man, what are you doing?_..."  
>"HEY! Hey-hey-hey. I think that you have the wrong person, my name is Fujita Rei."<br>"Oh, please," he sighed. "Don't use your code name on me, it won't work."

Tohru felt thick sweat drops running down his forehead; that man had way too much information in his hands. How was that possible? Each and every time, he was making sure to eradicate everything that would lead to a connection with his past and who he really was. He had long abandoned the identity of Yoshida Tohru and he was leading a life on his own cutting his connection with his family.

"I see... So, since you have **that** much information on me, and assuming that you are the Greek god that you say you are, what do you want from me?" he asked aggressively.  
>"Ohhh... that was a shock. It seems that you are getting back to your usual self slowly," Hermes said.<br>"And what about those two?"  
>"Oh, I stopped their time so they won't bother us for a while."<br>"You did what?"  
>"Don't worry, they'll be fine!"<br>"That's not what I'm worried about!"  
>"I' m here to invite you in the game of the Gods', isn't this your lucky day?" Hermes asked keenly while blinking.<br>"You make no sense,".  
>"Well, eternity is... long. So it can get really boring sometimes," Hermes started explaining. "So we, the gods, the Olympians, those super cool 12 Greek gods, you know... decided to play a game to pass the time. It's like those reality shows you guys have, only way more entertaining for us and with more interesting rules and rewards. Seriously, you people have to be more creative."<br>"So, you want me to join a reality show... I'm not interested."  
>"What a simpleton," he sighed. "Well, they usually describe me as a compassionate god so I thought I should ask. Well, I can always let those two catch you," he said pointing somewhere. "Look."<p>

Tohru gulped expecting to see the two men who were chasing him ready to shoot him, but instead they were both... frozen. Completely puzzled, he turned to face the mysterious man who was claiming to be a god. Tohru wasn't able to grasp the situation; "all that was set up", that was the only way he could explain it. Those men were trying to mess with his mind.

"Well, since you made your decision, I suppose I should leave you here. What a pity," Hermes said still holding the paper. "I bet you were glad to meet the awesome me. Have fun with your friends."

By the time he finished those words the two men suddenly moved. Tohru's eyes opened wide in terror and he stepped back again. After looking around confused, they managed to spot their target in a few moments. Tohru looked around him panicked and then he realized that the strange man was nowhere to be seen. Was he just an illusion? Maybe the cold, his lack of sleep and his hunger were playing games with his mind.

"I don't want to die..." he said, surprising his own self. "I don't want to die, damn it. I'll do it! I said I'll do it!" he shouted looking around him. "Where are you?"  
>"Please, sign here and here," a voice came from above and the paper appeared right in front of him.<br>"I'll sign later, just get me out of here."  
>"I'm not so naive, sign please. You can use your own blood or whatever, it will make it more dramatic."<br>"Just give me a damn pen!"  
>"Here," Hermes said quickly, but he could tell from his voice he was now pouting. "You humans are no fun."<p>

Tohru grabbed the pen which appeared in front of him; he was desperate enough to ignore the fact that the so-called Hermes was right over him floating in the air upside-down. Hermes smiled satisfied by the outcome; that man was easier to manipulate than he expected. It's not that he had many options though; Hermes was always lucky and had the perfect timing.

"What's going on?" Tohru asked seeing the two men getting closer and closer.  
>"Oh, don't mind them," Hermes replied. "Let's go."<p>

Tohru felt nauseous all of sudden, it was like someone had grabbed his insides. It was painful and so quick that he didn't manage to figure out what was happening. When he finally touched the ground, he vomited; cold sweat was running down his spine. He realized though that he was in a different place than before and free of those men' s threat.

"What a pitiful sight, really," Hermes commented.

What a pitiful sight indeed. Tohru knew himself that he was looking pathetic while his desperate attempts to stand up didn't have the desirable result. He had reached the state were his legs weren't obeying him and was left unable to do anything while the last bits of his energy were running out. He wanted to run away, he wanted to consider that night a terrible, crazy nightmare, but for some reason everything felt real-too real.

"I bet you feel extremely lucky now that you signed a contract with me," Hermes said.  
>"Don't flatter you self, of course I didn't sign with my real signature," he said crawling on the ground. "I have no obligation to obey you. Thanks for saving me though, I'll own you one... Even though I can't get what you did back there."<p>

He kept crawling, his instinct was telling him that he should run away from that place as fast as he could, even though he wasn't able to. The man hadn't reacted to his words. So, maybe it was okay for him to leave, maybe that man was too shocked or mad because he was swindled to react calmly and prudently, he still had a chance to escape perhaps. As desperate thoughts like those were filling his mind, his breath became difficult and soon he was gasping for air.

"Trying to swindle a god, seriously? And on the top of that, the god of _lies and fraud_?" the man asked snickering. "You have guts, maybe I should say 'As expected from my apprentice'," he said the last words with a fake enthusiasm "but, as I said, you are such a simpleton."

Tohru heard the man's steps approaching him quickly. He leaned over him and unrolled the paper right in front of his face. To Tohru's surprise the signature started changing shape. He wanted to ask how he was able to do that, to ask for further explanations but his breath was already hard and his consciousness was fading.

"It seems pretty real to me," Hermes said. "There is no running away now, not now, not ever actually, unless I want it. It says it pretty clear here. Your soul belongs to me," he snickered again.  
>"Ahhh... arghhh..."<br>"I know, you are speechless now, right? You can scream and play the victim though, it'll be fun."  
>"Arghhh..." Tohru pointed at his throat in agony.<br>"Oh, that," Hermes said faking a startle. "I forgot it."  
>"Like hell you did," Tohru said between breaths.<br>"Oww... I feel offended, how rude," he said smirking and released Tohru's breath.  
>"Yeah, I bet I hurt your feelings a lot," Tohru answered panting and coughing.<br>"That's the attitude," Hermes commented. "You are my apprentice now, so let's try to get along. I'm pretty sure that you are convinced you don't have to do with a normal person by now, unless you are too dump... So, it's the perfect time to discuss your role from now on."

Tohru finally realized that the man's claim that he is a god was the only "reasonable" answer to his powers. He touched his throat, still feeling the pain from seconds ago. He was there and he was dangerous; Tohru couldn't settle on the idea that he had no choice but to dance in that man's rhythm and raked the ground his with his fingers.

"Congratulations, starting from today you are officially a contestant in the 'Game of Gods'!" he announced and silence prevailed for a moment. "Oh, come now, give me a cheer."  
>"Yee... eh."<br>"That was the most boring cheer I've heard in my life...! And I live for... I can't even recall. Cheer up a bit. So, let me explain to you. The rules are pretty simple."  
>"Question," Tohru said raising his hand. "Supposedly, you are a god..."<br>"Oh, that again. I AM a god, do-"  
>"Fine! FINE!" Tohru snapped. "You are all gods and you are running around with your super powers, so why would gods start living among humans in order to play a game?"<br>"Oh, it's because we were bored," Hermes replied and shrugged indifferently.  
>"Ah, I should expect that kind of answer," Tohru sighed.<br>"Let me explain the rules. Each god has to find an apprentice that suits his personality and train him. Respectively, each participant has to develop skills that suit the beliefs, the abilities and the things his/her god rules over. The one who will manage to rise to the top will be the winner and he or she will have one wish granted. Simple, isn't it?"  
>"What do you mean by "rise to the top"?"<br>"I mean that he has to draw attention, become popular, he has to make others to respect him and 'worship' him, in other words he has to make others treat him like a god. The one who does a better job gets the nectar."  
>"Owww... Yes, that's pretty simple, I get it. How clever!"<br>"Isn't it?"  
>"Wake up, there is no way we'll win."<br>"Hmmmm?" Hermes titled his head perplexed.  
>"Yeah, like what do you want me to do? Become the king of thieves? Become the best runner in the country? To start my career as a merchant maybe? Oh...no, maybe even better...become a traffic cop?"<br>"And your point is?"  
>"I don't think that anything will work. I can become the master of lies but I don't think I could compete with the apprentices of gods like... like Athena or... or Zeus!"<br>"Oh, it's always about Athena and Zeus-Athena has a father complex by the way... but I think that you perception is wrong and extremely pessimistic as well. I want you to become the master of lies, fraud and trickery."  
>"Excuse me?"<br>"I want you to go out there and destroy everyone's efforts. Humiliate them, take away their audience, make them doubt themselves. You are going to be the joker." Hermes said with a big sadistic smile on his face.  
>"I'm going to be the what? Hold on. What about the rules?"<br>"There is no rule which forbids that, so it's perfectly fine," Hermes sighed. "Do you always whine that much?"  
>"And what are you going to gain from that?" Tohru questioned him.<br>"What a stupid question," he answered to that. "I'm going to entertaining myself."  
>"So you are telling me that I have to tangle with gods because you want to have fun."<br>"Ow... Look how bright you are. You make me proud for choosing you."

Inwardly, Tohru had cursed him and his luck a couple of times as their conversation was making a progress. Either he was a god or not, he didn't look compassionate, he even doubted if the word compassion was in that man's dictionary. Where was the fun in making someone do the dirty job just to laugh to the results? He didn't like his conceited altitude towards him either.

"So, why Japan?"  
>"Oh, Japan. It could be no other. A country with such culture should be the one and it was unanimous," he said in a suave way. "Is what you'd probably wanted me to say, but it was just a lucky choice. Artemis chose it while playing darts on a globe, blindfolded. <strong>I<strong> suggested that by the way. It was fun. Well, Artemis didn't particularly like it though..."  
>"Seriously..."<br>"Well, I guess you are done with the questions and I'm bored already so let's go to your place."  
>"What? No! I di-"<p>

Tohru felt the same painful feeling he had the first time and seconds later he was throwing up once again. Hermes looked at him with a disgusted, disappointed look and shook his head telling him that he should have gotten used to that already. Tohru felt a great urge to punch him but he had reached his limit already, thus he could barely move. The last thing he saw before he fell asleep on the floor due to exhaustion was Hermes raising an eyebrow while he was standing in front of him with his hands folded.

The day he met the god of luck and fortune was the unluckiest day Tohru ever had...


	2. Hello, my apprentice

_Welcome! The second chapter is up. I don't have much to say except that I really enjoy the Greek mythology section of F.F. these days. I even found a couple of really interesting stories and I can't wait to read more of them! Thanks for reading!_

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><p>When you wake up on the floor, with your whole body in pain, while an awful smell next to you penetrates your nostrils, you instantly know that the day before wasn't a good one. Tohru exclaimed disgusted when his hand touched the "fluids" he had let on the floor the last night, looking at them with a face of despair, and then fell back sick and tired from what he had experienced few hours before he wakes up.<p>

"Goodmorning sunshine!" a loud and clear voice greeted him.

Tohru took a deep breath and started to stand up. He had a terrible headache but that was the last thing that was troubling him at that time. The annoying man who was sitting on his comfy couch was, alone, a big problem he had to face. Caressing the nape of his neck, he headed to the bathroom; the only thing he wanted was a good shower.

"How cold. I guess you are not the morning type," Hermes snorted.

Tohru stopped for a moment trying to remain calm. He didn't have a good sleep, the muscles of his body were aching and he could hear his bones creaking with every step he was making but he doubted that it was the aftereffects of all the running he had done to escape. He knew though that he was teleported twice and in both cases that let a bad effect on him.

"That's not the issue..." he mumbled.  
>"Hurry up! I was zapping all night and I'm really bored here!"<br>"Look..." Tohru started. "You let me lying on the floor all night after you did your... magic tricks or whatever... my body hurts, I have a headache and I have to leave this place as soon as possible, not to mention the town for a while, in order to cover my traces, so... just let me take my shower in peace."  
>"OK, go ahead."<br>"Thank you," Tohru said rolling his eyes.  
>"Hurry up though!" Hermes called once Tohru closed the door.<br>"Damn it, shut up already."  
>"I can hear you!" Hermes said in a sign-song voice.<p>

Tohru sighed. Though he still wanted to consider his self sane, he had to admit that that man was definitely inhuman in every sense of the word. Despite of that, it was hard to admit that there were ancient deities living among humans and, on top of that, deities from another country. He was never a man deeply involved with his religion, he was neither an innocent man or a man seeking for enlightenment, but he was knowledgeable about many things around myths and legends, Japanese or not. However, he never believed that they existed, not even as a child.

If Greek gods were actually true, then what about other deities? What about other religions? He wanted to know...! But then he wasn't sure if it would be clever to ask about a matter like that. And then, despite his powers, Hermes looked like a normal human with flesh and bones, so supposing that it was a well-executed prank, he'd make a fool out of himself with such a question.

"I have the eternity in front of me, you don't!" Hermes called. "You are so slow, Tohru... in many ways!"  
>"Oh, just shut up already!" Tohru snapped getting out of the shower.<br>"You have guts to talk back to a god, don't blame me if nemesis befalls you one day!" Hermes said, there was no anger in the tone of his voice however.  
>"Gods' apprentices can't have their privacy for a moment?" Tohru asked wrapping his towel around his hips.<br>"Relax, you are too tensed."  
>"I'm trying to but I can't, thanks to a specific someone!"<br>"Do you mean the landlord? Worry not, I killed him yesterday."  
>"You did what?"<p>

Tohru burst into the living room in distress and grabbed Hermes from his shoulders. That was the last thing he needed piled up with the rest of his problems. He shook the rather nonchalant man, who was looking at him with an annoying apathy without giving him an explanation, who he instead pointed down at his hips.

"I didn't expect you to be so explicit Tohru, but let me clarify that I consider our relationship strictly professional and you are not my type at all. Also when I said that I'm bored I didn't have that in mind... Please note; I said bored, not desperate."  
>"Euh? What are you... Wha-no!" Tohru quickly grabbed his towel and made a few steps back wrapping it around him again. "Don't look you pervert!"<br>"I wonder who is the pervert here," Hermes said browsing through the pages of a magazine. "You Japaneses are so uptight. The fact that you are like you have a stick up in the ass can be the only explanation to these BL novels, manga, anime and games you have."  
>"You are not funny if that's what you are trying to be... and what did you do to the landlord?"<br>"Would you relax, I did nothing to him. I was just joking. Why would I kill him for no reason? That' d be no fun and I can't see any profit for me in doing so. The face you made when you heard it was priceless on the other hand."  
>"That's not a joke!"<br>"Your sense of humor sucks, it's not my fault," Hermes said.  
>"Yeah, definitely, that's the problem," Tohru said sarcastically.<br>"I'm glad we agree... Now, here. Look at this," he said letting the magazine he was holding on the table.

Tohru raised an eyebrow and moved closer cautiously to take a better look of what appeared to be a popular lifestyle magazine. Hermes was clearly pointing at the man on the cover. Tohru looked from the magazine to Hermes and then back to the magazine. On the cover he could see an objectively handsome man, the type who'd be definitely popular with the ladies. He had seen him a couple of times before on magazines' covers not a long time before that day.

"So, is there a particular reason you are showing me this man or you are just specifying the type of the man you are into?" Tohru asked with a smirk.  
>"I understand your need to come up with a witty answer, my brothers feel this need a lot too, especially Ares-though with his level of intelligent is kind of hard- but as a matter of fact, yes, he is."<br>"What?" Tohru exclaimed surprised.  
>Still pointing at the same man, Hermes smirked. "In other news, <strong>this<strong> is Aphrodite."  
>"You mean, Aphrodite's apprentice, right?" Tohru asked taking the magazine in his hand. "Just because he is the type women usually prefer, it doesn't mean that he is her apprentice. We have way too many idols in this country you know," he added waving the magazine right in front of Hermes.<br>"Oh please, there is no way Aphrodite will stay away from the lights of the spotlight. As a matter of fact, this one is her apprentice," he said throwing another magazine on the table. "Aphrodite is this man's manager."

Tohru read the articles Hermes pointed out curiously. It was a fact that both of them had started to rise into their industry suddenly about six months ago and the press was describing them as mysterious persons, but that didn't really prove anything. On the top of that, he was just recruited so Hermes' theory had an obvious flaw. Tohru smiled confidently and threw the magazine back on the table.

"Aren't you rushing into baseless speculations, Hermes?" he asked rather cocky. "These men are in their industry for a while now. The game just started. There is no way they are those you claim that they are. I suppose that you are the one who has to relax. Now excuse me, I'll go to get dressed."  
>"Well, did I ever say that the game just started? I don't recall that," Hermes said blinking.<p>

After Hermes words, he froze on the spot. It was definite that he hadn't mention many things, including the day the game had started, but could it be that he had let a six-month gap compared to the others? That would be reckless, not to mention unnecessary!

He slowly turned to face Hermes who was following his movements with his eyebrows arched. He was afraid to ask, or rather he was afraid of the answer he'd get. So, after he considered the possibilities based on Hermes' rotten personality, he decided to that it would be better to he be left ignorant of the real situation and go to put some clothes on him.

"The game started six months ago," Hermes said.  
>"You were enjoying this pause, weren't you?" Tohru asked giving him and angry glance.<br>"What are you talking about?" Hermes asked looking away.  
>"You were definitely enjoying it! Why did you recruit me just yesterday then? You claim to be an almighty god, don't tell me that you weren't able to find me!"<br>"That's true, I'm an almighty awesome god, I chose you since day one," he said pointing up a finger. "But it wouldn't be fun since everyone would be at the beginning of their plans. I mean you were useless to me back then, so there was no point."  
>"Useless? I was useless?"<br>"Now their plans and apprentices have matured, thus the fun starts now. Plus I had so much fun in Okinawa."  
>"Look, you misunderstood something here," Tohru said obviously irritated. "You have my soul in your hands or whatever and maybe I can do nothing about that... But keep in your oh-so-great mind that if I won't cooperate efficiently with you, you won't get your oh-so-precious fun. In other words, if you want things to go smoothly... Tell me about important things like this first!"<br>"Was that supposed to be a threat?" Hermes asked blinking.  
>"As a matter of fact, yes."<br>"Oh... OH!" he exclaimed and took a poise like a maiden in danger. "Tohru, don't get so angry, Hermes is so sorry."  
>"Don't make fun of the situation. Anyway. Explain. We are talking about Aphrodite here, the goddess of love, beauty and sexuality. This is a man," he said pointing at the cover.<br>"Well, that's the reason. We **are**talking about Aphrodite. Trust me, I know better."

Tohru threw his head back and sighed deeply. He had been sighing way too much since his meeting with Hermes, that much he could tell. That he couldn't tell though was what that man had in his mind and that wasn't helping the situation. His personality wasn't something he could handle either, Tohru had started to realize that in exchange for his life, he would have to go through hell for six months. Six months, that man had let six months to pass just like that.

"I'm going to get dressed and gather my belongings," Tohru finally said. "I have to leave this place, so I don't have time for that."

He closed the door behind him, grabbed a rucksack and put some clothes along with his gadgets and credit cards into it. He was disappointed, he had to leave that place while he had settled there for about a year. When he had finally started to get used to it and thought that he has found the perfect hideout, one that he could soon call home, he messed up. Except of his wardrobe, which was bound to be left behind, and tons of paper which should be left unseen for his own good, he didn't have much to take with him.

He looked at his reflection in the mirror. Even after the bath, he looked horrible. The dark circles under his eyes were worse than ever before. It was obvious that he needed a break from all that. It was when he remembered that he was wearing color eye contacts and the loss of the right one resulted to make him look like he had heterochromia. He image was awful, if he should describe it in one word. His wet black hair were glued on his skin in a messy way making things worse.

"I'm a mess," he said removing the left eye contact. "Now... Where is my laptop?" he asked scanning the room with his eyes while trying to get dressed.  
>"Can I help you with something?" Hermes asked entering into the room without permission.<br>"Knock the door before you enter, damn it!"  
>"I took the trouble to enter through the door, show some gratitude," said Hermes, waving his hand dismissively.<br>"Yeah, my gratitude overflows at the moment," he said finally dressed up and randomly threw a few of his belongings into his rucksack.  
>"I'm glad to know that," Hermes said browsing through Tohru's drawers. "Oh, adult magazines! Aren't you taking those?"<br>"Just leave them there!" Tohru said flushed. "Did you really have to spot _these _from all things?"  
>"Well, I'm pretty erotic myself."<br>"And really boastful too," Tohru said. "Oh, here it is..."  
>"I wouldn't say boastful, self-aware maybe... Oh, this one is nice, I'd hit that. Look Tohru," he said turning the contents of the magazine towards him.<br>"Seriously... 'I'd hit that'? You are supposed to be a god, you are no different from..."  
>"Someone like you who reads adults magazines?"<br>"I wasn't going to say that but... yes."  
>"Hmmm... I usually have better taste though," he said musing.<br>"Okay, almost ready now," he said grabbing a pile of papers.  
>"I can help with those."<br>"No, thank you," he said fetching his laptop and rucksack.

All he had to do was to burn those documents and papers and never go back to that place. Of course since he had entered his home in a strange way the night before it would be better if he didn't leave from the front entrance, so he opened the window quickly. Hermes was curiously observing him, with the adult magazine still in his hands while looking at him with disdain, and then titled his head.

"You look funny," he said.  
>"Oh, thank you. That helps a lot," Tohru replied to his comment. "I have to be careful here, so can you refrain from comments like that one?"<br>"What are you doing?"  
>"Well, apparently I'm trying to save my ass from those you met last night. They will discover my whereabouts sooner or later if I stay here," he said.<br>"Oh, that would be bad for your ass," he said tossing the magazine away. "I got bored of it already. So... Shall we go then?"  
>"Excuse me? Go where?"<br>"To my place of course."  
>"Olympus?" Tohru asked sarcastically.<br>"Nah, I can't go back to Olympus till this game ends. Okinawa," he said placing his hand on Tohru's shoulder. "This place" he said with his nose up high, pointing all around Tohru's room "doesn't suit my taste, I got bored of it already."

As he was about to give him a very colorful piece of his mind when Hermes put a hand on his shoulder...and Tohru immediately knew."No! Wait! Don't do that again!" he said in horror.

That terrible feeling pierced him, he didn't want to experience it again, at least not that soon. The last experience was still fresh and awful... At least this once he had enough energy to run directly to the W.C. in front of him before he throws up. When it finally stopped he crawled on the floor exhausted and sent a glare to Hermes who was calmly observing the situation.

"I knew that this would happen. Get used to it already."  
>"Easier said than done." he said trying to stand up.<br>"Flush the toilet" Hermes said.  
>"So mush for my first order from a god," Tohru said making a grimace.<br>"So, what do you think of my place?" he said throwing himself on a sofa.

Hermes' place was pretty spacious, and more minimalistic than Tohru had expected. A 42'' LCD screen and a couple of video game consoles weren't missing though, as well a huge bookcase full of books and magazines. He could see outside through a huge glass partition. The house was decorated in shades of blue, gray and white. It was too common, definitely not suited for a god, but it seemed comfortable and had a nice feeling to it.

"This place has two bedrooms," he said looking over the sofa. "You can take the one to your right."  
>"Ah, thank you," Tohru said a bit confused.<br>"Make yourself at home."  
>"...Thank you," he said entering the room.<p>

Tohru left his rucksack on the floor. The room was nice and fully equipped. Not only did it have a bed and a wardrobe but also a desk with a computer, a bookcase and a TV. Tohru pressed his mattress with his hand. He couldn't remember when he had last touched a mattress so soft like that one. His room had all the required featured comforts.

He laid slowly on his bed, as many things were passing through his mind, but he wasn't able to relax. The situation he was in didn't just look crazy but also rushed and awkward. What was he doing there and on top of that with a weird man like him? He was ready to get his self in trouble once again. Granted, he had no other option but he was still doubting the whole thing.

"Is it your first time here?" Hermes asked standing in front of the door.  
>"Euh?"<br>"Is it your first time in Okinawa?"  
>"No," he said after a pause. "I did come once when I was a kid."<br>"Oh, memories with daddy?"  
>"Got a problem with that?" Tohru asked annoyed.<br>"Not at all, you should treasure them. My dad never did this kind of things. He was too busy with his affairs and torturing the humankind."  
>"Your father? As in Zeus? Still, you say that with a straight face."<br>"Well, you can get over things like that after the first centuries," Hermes replied with a smile. "I'm still one of his favorites though," he proudly claimed.

Tohru lifted up his body. So even Gods had their own issues, was what he thought. Leaving aside the weird powers he had shown him, Hermes still looked like a normal young adult to him. A spoiled and conceited one maybe so, but still a normal one more or less.

"Oh! Don't hide your adult magazines from now on! Sharing is caring!" Hermes said aloud.

Then again, no matter how normal he seemed to be, Tohru wasn't pleased with the idea that they would be roommates for six whole months. With no money, it would be hard to reserve a nice and safe place for the sake of his personal time, yet he was already worried about the state of his nervous system after their cohabitation. He didn't want to play the role of the nanny or the butler or the maid either, not to mention the toy. The future looked bleak...


	3. Work hard, my apprentice

_Hello and welcome again. I want to thank you for your reviews, there are always appreciated even if I don't reply. Also I have to thank Fallen_Angel_Itachi for editing this part, my grammar is no-good so it really helps a lot._

_We have a new appearance in his chapter. The truth is that I didn't want to rush the things, so it might take a couple of chapters, including this one, before they meet the first of the 12 gods they will compete with. I hope that you will enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

><p>Tohru had just finished tidying up and organizing his belongings and papers when he heard a loud noise coming from the living room. Curious, he went to see what had happened only to witness a rather odd scene. Hermes was almost covered by a pile of magazines. The word 'god' or 'deity' had a more important meaning in his mind before he meets him; that was certain. How could a god or a deity be a klutz for example? Why would he choose to live among humans and in a common house?<p>

"I think I have all of them now," Hermes said gesturing to sit. "Tohru, come! Look at these magazines, the reporters are all over Aphrodite lately."  
>"Was that really necessary?" Tohru asked leaning over the pile. "We could have searched for more info on the internet," he added checking out the covers.<br>"That will help too," Hermes said after a pause.  
>"You hadn't thought about that before, had you?" Tohru asked in disbelief.<br>"I need you to find more info on her apprentice for now, it would be great if you could find some dirt on him. It will be of great use. It won't be difficult to discover Aphrodite's whereabouts anyway."  
>"So, why Aphrodite first?" Tohru asked taking a seat on the sofa. "Is she an easy target or you miss her too much that it's so important to find where she is?"<br>"I'd say that she is just a really available target for now. As for the second part, it's not entirely false. I'm not the one who misses her enough to search like crazy for her though, she can be a real bitch sometimes, so I don't really mind. That's why she usually fights with Athena. They are similar in one way."

Tohru arched an eyebrow; he wasn't able to fully understand the meaning behind Hermes words but he decided to ignore it than trying to find it. While looking at the photos of the man who was supposed to be Aphrodite, he tried to figure out how would something like that make sense. And if Hermes was right, what were they supposed to do? What would be the risks while facing a god and what kind of powers each of them had? Were power and gifts granted to the other apprentices maybe? The situation was confusing and Hermes wasn't very helpful.

Hermes couldn't stop laughing while he was reading one of the man's interviews. Tohru had started to strongly believe that Hermes could easily claim the title of the Greek god of sadism if he wanted to. From the beginning the word fun was always at the tip of this tongue, even if that "fun" was coming from seeing someone in pain. He pressed two fingers one his temple trying not to think about the things that lay in waiting for him.

"So, why did she choose to appear as a male? Any thoughts on that?" Tohru asked.  
>"Hmmm... It's because it's Aphrodite we are talking about, she is the goddess of love."<br>"Though I somehow get your reasoning, which it's not necessary logical, I still don't get the reason."  
>"It's pretty simple," Hermes protested sliding down the sofa.<br>"So, it's becauuuuse..." he prompted.  
>"She felt like it!" Hermes said like it was the most reasonable explanation.<br>"I have the feeling that almost all of the conversations we had until now have the same pattern and conclude with explanations like this one, which do not satisfy me at all."  
>"Really?" Hermes replied, not really paying attention.<br>"What's the big plan then? What are we supposed to do?"  
>"Oh? Isn't this <em>your<em> job? You are supposed to figure that out, you are my apprentice after all."  
>"Aren't <strong>you<strong> supposed to guide me? An apprentice should have some guidance, am I wrong?"  
>"Oh, but <em>my<em> apprentice is so clever that he can figure that out on his own."  
>"Don't look away while saying so, you make it way too obvious that you don't believe what you said to the least!" Tohru snapped.<br>"Look, your job is pretty simple, so don't complain. You find, you plan, you destroy!" Hermes said balling his fist while flashing a smile.  
>"The passion you put in the two last words was kind of scary," Tohru said, though he didn't look impressed at all. "The point is that between the "find" and "destroy" there was the, insignificant may to you, little word "plan" which actually... requires a lot of thought!" he barked.<br>"You are exaggerating."  
>"<em>Am I<em>? The fact that I'm working for you doesn't really motivate me either," Tohru said throwing the magazine he was holding on the table and then crossed his legs.  
>"Oh, that's a problem..." Hermes said folding his arms.<p>

Tohru arched his eyebrows; was Hermes honestly considering what he had said or he was ready to mock or insult him once again? In the end, the only certain thing was that Tohru couldn't figure that man out even if he tried to and that fact was making him feel uneasy. Hermes cupped his chin and titled his head, he seemed to be in deep thought for a second.

"So, what about a monthly salary and an extra bonus for every apprentice you destr... beat? Is 150.000 yen good enough for a monthly-..."  
>"I'll do it," Tohru said taking Hermes' hands into his.<p>

Hermes' was surprised by his fast reaction. Through centuries, bribes always work after all and Hermes was somehow pleased to know that. He had added one more of Tohru's weaknesses to the list.

"That was pretty fast... and easy. Aren't you a cheap one, Tohru?"  
>"So, when do we start?" Tohru asked fired up, ignoring completely what Hermes said.<br>"I already asked you to find some dirt on this Kei guy who serves as her apprentice," Hermes asked waving his hand indifferently.  
>"I can start with that right away, but what if the guy is clear? Though I don't believe that he will be."<br>"Let's worry about that later. Find out whatever you can about him first. I'll go out for a walk. Make sure to have some info when I come back."  
>"Wait! You are going out for a walk while <em><strong>I<strong>_ do the work?"  
>"I saved your ass, you are being chased and I <em>do, <em>well... _will_ pay you. It's fair, isn't it? So, see you later," he said and disappeared in an instant.

The room was finally quiet and Tohru spaced out for a second, looking at the empty space where Hermes was standing a few moments before. He wasn't able to familiarize himself with the supernatural that easily, actually he thought that it would be impossible for him. Espers, fairies, ghosts and -above all- deities, they were things that he used to mock from time to time. He has seen many things, but, either they were unbelievably cruel or unbelievably kind, even things that looked like magic, they were always done by humans. Till then, he only believed in things explained by science, things that you put in words and numbers. But there he was witnessing things he couldn't explain and maybe science couldn't explain either.

"I have to get used to this soon," he mumbled to his self. "Now... on to work..." he said opening his precious laptop. "Where is the my notepad?"

Info; the first thing you have to do before you have a job done is to gather info, both for the client and the target, that was his motto. He wasn't into idols and he hardly had the time to enjoy music whatsoever so he knew nothing about the idol 'Kei' that had attracted the attention of the teenage girls of his country. The search engines would be more than enough to provide him with the basics. A notepad and a pen were necessary since he had a habit of noting down things that had drawn his attention.

That was the easy part of his job, the first step and a routine he always did. However, while browsing though the results and when he was close to the end of his search, it stroke him. Kei was the target, but what about the client? His fingers moved spasmodically, of course his client was Hermes but it was ridiculous, that's the only way he could describe it. The power of one's habit can be scary, without much of resistance his fingers typed the word 'Hermes' into the search field and the mouse hastily clicked the search button. Tohru let an odd sort of laugh, something between relief and madness.

"I couldn't help it, it's something like a protocol," he excused his action to his self. "I couldn't help it," he mumbled again not being discouraged by the number of the results.

It was already afternoon when he finally finished with the first step of his search and his stomach was grumbling worse than an old man. After arguing with himself, or better yet his stomach, whether he should open the fridge and get something to eat while Hermes was not around, he gave in quickly and opened the door to his heaven; which was actually really disappointing. In the view of an empty fridge he had a strong desire to scream out loud and kick it hard but, if there was on thing he could do well, that was to refrain from acting like this when he really felt the need to do so.

"I'm going to die..." he mumbled. "I'm really going to die and I'll definitely haunt him for the rest of his undying life for this..." he said since water wasn't enough to keep him going anymore. "HERMES!"

That time he could swear that he had put every bit of energy left in his body into that scream. Of course he wasn't expecting a quick response and he did it without thinking but, to his surprise, it worked. Hermes materialized out of nowhere in front of him looking annoyed and ready to complain for the sudden call.

"What is it? You can't stay alone for a while? What are you? A rabbit?" he started.

Hermes words sounded like a lengthy 'blah-blah-blah' into his ears when he spotted something that was much more to his interest than Hermes speech. There was a nice, delectable yakitori and he could feel himself drool at the mere sight of it. He was so focused on it that all his surroundings seemed completely insignificant compared to that unexpected source of food, a suitable one to satisfy his hunger.

The next thing he did could be described as the most embarrassing thing he had ever done in his whole life and later he wanted to delete it from his memory with his whole being. Suddenly, feeling a wave of power inside him, he jumped from the couch he was laying on and attacked Hermes' hand taking him by surprise. Hermes' yakitori had come under his possession and he bite it avidly, without a sign of hesitation. When he finally came to his senses he saw Hermes looking at him with a face of disgust.

"You know... you could just ask," Hermes said and Tohru looked away in embarrassment. "Anyway, you can have the rest of it too if you want," he added and tossed a plastic bag towards him.

Feeling his image getting racked by his own behavior, he still swallowed his pride and gladly took the offer. Humans can become worse than wild animals when they are starving, was what he thought inside his head trying to excuse the way he had acted because of his hunger. In between, Hermes had discovered Tohru's notebook and was already browsing through it.

"Oh, you have a lot of detailed and... useless information in here," he commented.

Tohru tensed and grabbed the notebook quickly. After all, he had made that stupid search about Hermes and that was the last thing he wanted "his client" to discover. He had already embarrassed himself once and he didn't want it to happen twice in a day. He was confident that Hermes would make an awkward comment to make the situation worse if he had the chance to see more of the contents.

"Heeh... Do you have a picture of your girlfriend in there and you became all embarrassed? Well, if that's the case I have to admit that I would be surprised since it seems kinda impossible for you, but don't go acting all embarrassed like a highschooler, come on. You have to show me the info you get anyway."  
>"That's only basic information," Tohru said between bites. "Stop browsing through other people's things or notes without permission."<br>"I'll miss all the fun that way!" he protested.  
>"Who cares?"<br>"So, did you find anything interesting?" Hermes asked.  
>"Don't change the topic whenever it suits you! Anyway..." Tohru said waving the stick left from the yakitori in front of him. "The guy seems so perfect that it stinks. I mean... He values family and music more than anything? He does community service, concerts for charities? And says fluffy thinks like; everyone's support is what keeps me going."<br>"You mean that there is no perfect man?" Hermes asked raising an eyebrow.  
>"Well, even if one exists, I haven't met him," Tohru replied. "I mean, everything he does and says are planned beforehand for the eyes of his fans. I mean who does community service in front of cameras when he does it because he just feels so?"<br>"Well," Hermes said laying back. "Idols are all about image, right? The point is that this image brings him success."  
>"That doesn't change the fact that this image is fake. His smile looks more fake than one of a plastic doll," Tohru said standing up.<p>

Hermes followed Tohru with the corner of his eyes. Tohru, still holding his notebook in his hand, was searching though his belongings in his bag with an annoyed face. Finally, he took out his cellphone and quickly browsed through his contacts. Hermes threw his head back, interested in his phone call.

"Fujita!" a voice loud enough for Hermes to hear answered the phone call.  
>"Hey, Nobu-"<br>"Are you OK? I heard about what happened! I was so worried! Are you hiding right now? Are you sure that it's OK to call me?"  
>"Nobu, I want you to find information about someone for me," Tohru said.<br>"Cold as ever, are you? So, what's this time?"  
>"The idol, Kei."<br>"Eh?"  
>"Kei, he is-"<br>"Well, I know who you mean, but Fujita-kun... Since when are you interested in idols... and in a male one as well?"  
>"It's a job, a job. I'm not interested in this stuff at all. Find whatever you can about him, if there is some kind of dirt, I want to know."<br>"Don't tell me! Fujita, are you so desperate that you are going to blackmail him?"  
>"I told you, it's a job. A request from a customer."<br>"A customer? Could it be... he is a die-hard fan?"  
>"Ah, that's how it is. This guy can't even sleep before he takes a peek at the poster he collects."<br>"I see! I'll see what I can do! Count on me!"  
>"I'll call you tomorrow."<br>"Tomorrow? Fujita, you are demanding as always."  
>"I'll pay you anyway, the same as always."<br>"Thank you! It's always a pleasure to work with you."  
>"Under me," Tohru corrected and Nobu let a nervous laugh. "Tomorrow then."<p>

By the time the phone call ended Hermes had already burst out laughing, which made a vein tremble menacingly. What was so funny, Tohru couldn't tell, but since it was obvious that Hermes was laughing _at him_ it was more than enough to make him furious. Seconds later a magazine from the random, various, piles around the room landed on Hermes face.

"Oh, come one! What are you, twelve?" Hermes asked.  
>"Like you are the one to talk!"<br>"Sorry, just listening to you while you were trying to play boss was hilarious. Man, it doesn't suit you at all!" Hermes sniggered.  
>"Well, at least... <em>I'm<em> not a delivery boy."

Hermes' laugh stopped so abruptly that Tohru immediately knew that he had hit bull's eye. That time it was him who sniggered, though it was a poor attempt. He knew very well, even since his childhood, that his sense of humor wasn't the best. He wouldn't laugh easily with what was considered a good joke either, while he would laugh with things no one else considered funny so at some point he started to hardly laugh at all. His attempts to flash a smile in front of a mirror always had pathetic results.

"I am **not** a delivery boy! I am a messenger! A messenger!" Hermes strongly protested.  
>"Yeah, sure," Tohru replied and as soon as he finished his words a magazine hit him hard on his face.<br>"Behold, my almighty punishment!"  
>"Why, you..." Tohru tried to attack Hermes only to land in an empty couch.<p>

Naturally, Hermes wouldn't stay still to receive an attack, however Tohru couldn't stand the fact that Hermes was taking advantage of his powers even in that situation. He slammed his fist hard on the table next to him.

"That's unfair!"  
>"Is it?" Hermes asked faking an innocent face. "Well, who cares?"<br>"You... flying delivery fairy!"  
>"I'm <strong>not<strong> a fairy! That's it. Hermes' special attack! Super-awesome-godly punishment Hermes' special!"

In the view of a-what seemed to be-energy ball, Tohru's eyes opened wide in horror and then, before he manages to defend himself, everything went black...

…When he finally regained consciousness, the only thing he knew was that his body seemed lighter and his head a bit dizzy. Outside, it was still bright, so he presumed that he was sleeping all night long. His eyes caught a note right next to him and picked it up curiously.

'Hello my dear dog! Your master is out for the day! Behave and don't lit the house!  
>- The almighty god, Hermes<p>

PS. Don't dare to call.'

"Who are you calling a dog?" Tohru snapped tearing the paper in pieces, throwing it all around the floor.

Though, that note wasn't the best thing to read after you wake up, Tohru soon regained his calm thinking that he would at least have some privacy for the day. And that was true, since Hermes wasn't there, the house was completely quiet. Finally he had the chance to do something about his situation.

Time passed quickly as he was browsing and checking various documents while noting down things that would be useful not only to cover his trail but also get him out of his situation. It was already afternoon when Tohru realized that he hadn't eaten anything once again. It was like he was forcing himself to go through unnecessary diet. While searching the house for something eatable, or if Hermes actually had the consideration to leave some money behind, the bell rang.

Unsure if he should actually open the door, he decided to take a look through the peephole first. A man, with red hair and green eyes, dressed in a suit, was trying to take a look through the peephole as well, while he was impatiently taping his foot on the ground; he was definitely a foreigner. Though he was dressed in a suit, his style was kind of messy, his shirt was slightly open and a gold chain was hanging from his belt. He couldn't exactly describe him as suspicious and he didn't want to believe that someone had find his trace all the way to Okinawa while he hadn't use any means of transportation to go there, either. After all, taking the airplain to go there in his situation would be out of question.

Tohru opened the door slowly. To his surprise the man let out a happy shout and placed his hand on Tohru's arms. Feeling uneasy and embarrassed by the man's (forward) actions, he took a few steps back. He had never met him before in his life so his extremely friendly behavior was absurd, not to mention unreasonable.

"You must be Tohru, right?" the man asked.  
>"And you are..."<br>"I'm Hermes' friend. Hermes' told me to take care of you while he is away."  
>"Hermes' didn't mention something about that, please leave," Tohru said coldly ready to close the door.<br>"Oh, come on!" the man said with the railed voice and stopped the door with one hand. "You must know that Hermes' doesn't like it when the others disobey him. Plus, do you think that he is considerate enough to mention everything?" he asked with a loud laugh.  
>"No, definitely not," he admitted bitterly.<br>"See?" the man asked. "And you must be hungry as well. Hermes told me that I'd have to treat you."

Tohru considered for a moment. The invitation for a meal was indeed tempting. He wasn't sure about that man, but there was a high possibility that Hermes' was the one who sent him. When a god forgets to mention that he had left a six-months gap between him and the other competitor into the game, why would he mention that he would sent someone to treat him to dinner?

"How do I know that Hermes is the one who sent you? It may be a trap. Aren't you a god as well?"  
>"Do I look like a god? Ah, what a great honor, you are flattering me," the man laughed loudly yet again. "Do I look like one of the Olympians?" he asked and scratched the back of his head.<p>

With that altitude it was hard to believe something like that, was what passed through Tohru's mind. He seemed to be nothing more than a normal human, a very easy going one, too.

"OK, I'm coming. Just give me a second."  
>"As you wish, sir!" the man saluted.<p>

'Somehow I feel that he can turn to be as annoying as Hermes,' Tohru thought before leaving the house.

The stranger lead the way singing a song Tohru hadn't listen before in his life, which left him wondering if that man was making the lyrics in the spot; the lyrics sucked. Though he was pleased that he didn't have to use Hermes' teleportation, he was also puzzled by the expensive car the man owned. Acting all nervous, he entered the car with really careful moves.

"I'll make sure you eat a lot and have a loooot of fun!" the man said entering carelessly inside the car. "Driver, let's go!" he ordered cheerfully and placed an arm around Tohru's shoulders.

"That's creepy," Tohru thought trying to push the hand away.

Because of the man's way-too friendly manners, for Tohru the ride was like hell. Not only that guy was acting way too cordially in a very loud way, he didn't even stop talking for a second. But that wasn't the worse part. Instead of a fast-food restaurant or a restaurant whatsoever that man had taken him to a cabaret club.

"Come now, don't be shy!" he called from the door waving at him.  
>"Th-that's..." Tohru stuttered.<br>"Come," the man said coming all the way back to the car to drag him. "You are a big boy, aren't you? There is no reason to act like that," he laughed loudly again.  
>"I-I guess..."<p>

Without any other protest, Tohru found himself into the cabaret. It was the first time he felt his cheeks burn like crazy, he wasn't used to the atmosphere either. The loud man was surrounded immediately by various women and ordered drinks for both of them taking a seat on the bar tapping the seat next to him. He hesitated for a moment, having a bad feeling about that.

"Oh, where did you go?"  
>"You know we can't have fun without you."<br>"Dio, you have to tell us when you are going to leave."  
>"Ahahaha, what can I say, I just had to go and bring my friend there. I hope you can entertain him as well," the so-called Dio said.<br>"There is no need to," Tohru said nervously trying to focus into his glass.  
>"Ah, you don't have to be so shy," two girls said in unison and hugged him.<br>"I'm not," Tohru said trying to look away.  
>"Ah, I forgot! Hey, bring my friend here something to eat," Dio ordered.<br>"But-" the barman started to protest.  
>"Anything. It's an order," Dio said tapping a finger on the bar.<p>

'This guy likes tapping things a lot," Tohru randomly thought.

And in all honesty, he didn't really like the place. The red lights were making him dizzy and the smoke of the tobaccos was sickening. The were many women there, more than men, but somehow, seeing the pathetic image of the other males in there, he didn't want their company. Their food was another thing though, hungry as he was, he devoured everything on his plate within a few minutes.

"Hey, you are a healthy young man!" Dio said, loud as usual. "Come, drink!"  
>"No, I don-"<br>"It's just wine! Wine gladdens one man's heart!" the man said pouring wine into Tohru's glass with one hand while tapping his chest with the other.  
>"As you Japanese say, 'Kanpai'!" he said. "To our new friend!"<p>

Dio drank his glass of wine in one go, something that Tohru wasn't sure he could imitate.

"Ka-Kanpai..." Tohru nervously said and drank a few sips.  
>"You have to drink more, like a man." Dio said patting him on his back while he was refilling Tohru's glass.<br>"You sure pat a lot, you are too loud too, shut up for a moment," Tohru said feeling dizzy.  
>"That's the spirit! To our young man!" Dio said and the girls around him cheered.<br>"Kaanpaaai," Tohru said and drank a few more sips.  
>"To our young, clever Tohru!"<br>"That's it," Tohru said standing up after he took a few more sips. "To the awesome me!" he toasted and drunk the rest of his wine and everyone around him clapped. "Kyahaha."  
>"Yeah! To Hermes' naive apprentice!" Dio toasted and everyone around him cheered.<br>"YE-eh?"

Tohru stopped, trying to realize what Dio had just said. Since he wasn't used to alcohol, it took only one glass of wine to get intoxicated. Trying to stay up, he grabbed the bar in order to support himself but everything around him seemed to swirl. Unable to keep his balance he slumped on the floor feeling dizzy.

"You are not very resistant to alcohol, are you?" the man asked standing right next to him with a glass of wine in his hand.  
>"Wine..." Tohru mumbled. "I see... Dio... Dio... of course... Dionysus... the god of wine..." he said before he falls asleep.<p>

Tohru had forgotten one of his principles that day. _Always ask for their name first..._


	4. Troubles are fun

**And chapter 4 is up. I hope you'll like it! Thanks for reading! **

**Beta by _Fallen_Angel Itachi_ (than you!)**

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><p>When you wake up pitying yourself even before you open your eyes, you know that you are having a bad start already. As Tohru recalled the events of the day before he couldn't help but curse himself for being so naive. Not only he fell in the trap like a fool, but he had neglected an important thing in the way. Hermes would definitely laugh at him and that time he didn't have the right to try for a come back.<p>

He had a headache and a bad taste was swirling around his mouth, making him feel sick. Somehow, since he met Hermes he hadn't had a normal night's sleep. Trying to place his thoughts in order he realized that there were people in the place he was, using a strange language Tohru hadn't heard before. Slowly he was able to recognize a familiar voice...one of them must have been Hermes.

"I guess the note was useful after all," he thought.

Tohru opened his eyes slowly. He was right after all, Hermes was there talking with the odd man, both of them looked very cheerful. He had absolutely no idea what they were talking about, but he was able to distinguish his name a couple of times between the unknown words. Doing his best to stand up he realized that he wasn't very happy that Hermes was there.

"I hope you aren't badmouthing me," Tohru said while he was rubbing his forehead.  
>"Oh, he actually came to!" Dio, actually Dionysus, said.<p>

After making a few big steps, he crossed the room and stood in front of him, pulling him into a hug. Tohru could feel chills running down his spine, convinced after that that there was something wrong with that man. He even dared to complain when Tohru tried to push him away as hard as he could, much to Hermes' amusement who couldn't stop laughing.

"Hermes, your apprentice is rather cold," Dionysus complained overpowering Tohru with an armlock.  
>"Creep... creep..." Tohru mumbled experiencing a rather frighting cultural shock.<br>"Oh, shuffle his hair, he likes it," Hermes advised.  
>"No, anything but that," Tohru gulped.<br>"Ahahaha, how cute," Dionysus said, as he was already following Hermes' advise.

Wondering if all of the Greek gods used to act in a strange way, Tohru looked at Hermes, who was openly enjoying himself, for help; it was pointless, there was no way Hermes would ruin his own fan to help someone. In the end, his torture ended only when Dionysus decided to let him go and Tohru made sure to stay many steps away from him.

"So, when are you going to pay Aphrodite a visit?" Dionysus asked Hermes.  
>"Hey, Tohru," Hermes turned to him. "You were supposed to get info on Aphrodite's apprentice yesterday, right?"<p>

That was a good question, but unfortunately Tohru couldn't give the answer Hermes was expecting. Since he had left with Dionysus the day before, before he makes a call to Nobu, he ended up not calling at all. He had two options; he could tell the truth, since he wasn't his fault after all, or delay the answer until he was able to contact Nobu. Since accusing a god for his irresponsibility didn't seem to be a good idea, he chose the second one.

"Isn't he a god too?" Tohru asked pointing at Dionysus. "Why do I have to trust him? It may be a trap, he took me and got me drunk yesterday, right? Why would he do that for no reason?"  
>"Well, it's true that he didn't have my permission on that," Hermes replied cupping his chin. "But he is the god of wine, does he really need a reason?"<br>"Yes! He does! He actually does! Being the god of wine is not an excuse!"  
>"Come on," Dionysus laughed waving his hand in front of his face. "I just offered my wine, you had no obligation to drink but what's the problem anyway? Wine tastes good and makes you feel better, right?" he turned towards Hermes expecting him to give a nod in accord of his words.<br>"It's not exactly wrong, but not right either," Hermes replied.  
>"Come on Hermes, you are always like that! Don't answer diplomatically every time," Dionysus nagged hanging himself on Hermes' shoulders. "Why would I set a trap? My brother took care of me when I was an infant," he reasoned brushing his cheek against Hermes'.<br>"That was because father asked me to," Hermes said with a blank expression on his face.  
>"You are a shy one," Dionysus teased hustling him.<br>"Is he... drunk?" Tohru asked.  
>"Well, maybe... but it's not like he acts differently when he is not," Hermes replied.<p>

Tohru looked at them shocked and kind of disgusted. Since they were brothers it was only logical that Hermes would be used to his own brother's manners, but it was still creepy to him. He did not know if he should pity or admire Hermes for that, but at least he led, the conversation to a different subject and that was what mattered to him at that time.

"I do not participate as one of the 12 anyway," Dionysus added.  
>"Wait, isn't he one of the Olympians?" Tohru asked surprised.<br>"Well, it's true that he became a bit too popular and that resulted to Hestia assigning him her position in the Dodekatheon since she didn't care much for glory. However this guy ran away from home few decades ago."  
>"But things were soooo boring! Dad and Hera's quarrels were getting more and more annoying. You were confined by dad at that time as well, so things were even worse. Hephaestus was always busy and Apollo wouldn't play with me! I wanted to go out and have fun but father wouldn't give me his permission, so running away from home was the only way," Dionysus said playing with a lock of his hair.<p>

Greek gods seemed to have a lot of family issues and Tohru had the feeling that their dad was the main reason. The image of Zeus in Tohru's mind used to be that of an almighty Greek god with enough power to command everyone and decide the course of anything. But, after remembering myths that he had ignored as a kid - since they were pretty much incomprehensible to him back then**-**Zeus' affairs started to destroy the image of the almighty god into his mind while creating a new one of an unfaithful god, full of whims.

"Really? Isn't that how it always was?" Hermes asked him.  
>"Of course it wasn't!" Dionysus protested strongly. "We had humans Hermes, humans! We could interact more freely with them! You should be one of us who knows this the most, it's not fun without them!"<br>"OΚ, easy now!" Hermes looked a little worried.  
>"And then dad decided that we should keep a distance all of sudden!" Dionysus said like a kid whose father had taken his toys away. "I'm the god of wine, Hermes!"<br>"Well, I think that I should let you two alone to discuss your family matters," Tohru said walking to the door trying to act indifferently. "I'll be back in like 10... 20... 30 minutes maybe," he said exiting the room before Hermes manages to say a word.

"_Chance_!" he mumbled closing the door behind him.

Nobu should have the info he asked for by then, Tohru knew that. Since he had managed to make Hermes' busy with with little brother he should have enough time to call him and get the info before Hermes notices that he had failed to stay on schedule. Though Hermes didn't seem to have a schedule himself, Tohru knew that he wouldn't miss the chance to make fun of the situation.

His friend didn't take much time to answer the phone; from his voice Tohru could tell that he was worried. Since he didn't use to miss his appointments, whether it was face-to-face or on the phone, that was only natural. He had even scolded Nobu in the past for that too. The worse part though was that he had to give an explanation and of course Nobu wasn't pleased with the vague one he gave him. Considering Tohru's situation, bad thought's had past through his mind till the time Tohru called.

"Look, Nobu. I'll explain some other time. I can't right know. Do you have the info?"  
>"Well, I think that I will disappoint you though. I don't know why but I wasn't able to dig much for this guy, he must have someone strong backing him up. I think that the 'someone' we are talking about is his manager. I can't find anything about him either," Nobu said.<br>"It would be better to stay away from anything that has to do with his manager. Don't push it more than you can."  
>"Why is that?"<br>"I can't tell you now."  
>"Seriously, you are scaring me man."<br>"Nobu, the info."  
>"Right. He is actually from Aichi prefecture, from Seto to be more specific. It seems that he was expelled back in high school but I can't find the reason. I sent Nagi there to investigate a bit more. Other than that, the guy seems to be perfect, everyone loves him and his manager seems to be a bit overprotective. He is currently living with him."<br>"What? You mean that you know where he lives right now?"  
>"Yes, I can mail you with the details... Hey, are you sure that it's OK to call me while you have those guys after you?"<br>"If someone had to worry, that would be you. Don't worry, they won't be able to find a connection," Tohru assured him. "Tell me the details now."  
>"Now?" Nobu asked surprised.<br>"Yes, now. I don't have time to waste," Tohru scowled taking a quick look behind him.  
>"Ok," Nobu said after a short pause.<p>

He had finally acquired the info in triumph before Hermes notices and that was enough to make him snicker. However, the lack of information troubled him. If a god had the power to acquire that kind of influence in such a sort time then things were not going to be easy for him. He was of course an informant and he had his connections but he wasn't high in the hierarchy of his job.

"Sorry for-" started to say entering into the room again.

His words died in his throat when he witnessed the scene; Dionysus was sitting on Hermes' shoulders holding a bottle of wine. His chest was completely exposed and he was signing between hicks and laughs. Why would the god of wine get drunk himself, Tohru could not understand, but the scene was ridiculous, let alone he enjoyed the view of a jumpy Hermes' who was apparently serving as his little brother's babysitter.

"I'm back," Tohru said letting a chuckle.  
>"So, what did Nobu say?"Hermes' asked not drawing his attention away from Dionysus.<br>"What?"  
>"Hello, super-hearing," he said pointing at his left ear.<br>"Wha-I... Oh! Come on! Give me some privacy, will you?"  
>"No way. You might have attempted to run away."<br>"Does this mean that you can't control me as much as you want to say?" Tohru asked, trying to play it cool… but there was still a tone of hope in his voice.  
>"Keep dreaming, Chihuahua."<br>"Wha-? Screw you!"  
>"You wish."<br>"Wha-"

Torhu looked at him surprised, unable to make a come back and let out a grunt. Hermes' dirty mind surprised him once again.

Letting his cellphone furiously on the table, he took a seat and hid his face between his hands. He was angry and his stress was piling up; he was frustrated for not being able to deal with Hermes' wits and Nobu's info wasn't very helpful and on the top of that he didn't even have his privacy anymore! Unbearable; his situation was unbearable, he wasn't used to working under those circumstances.

"Anyway, Nobu said that he will mail me with more details later. For now, I have Aphrodite's address-"  
>"I already know where she lives though," Hermes said trying not to loose his balance since Dionysus wouldn't stop doing careless moves.<br>"Give me a break! You should have said that from the start!" Tohru complained. "And I still can't see what we can do to loose popularity. On top of that, do you think that Aphrodite will stay quiet?"  
>"That's why we need more information on him," Hermes replied calmly.<br>"So, we are going to blackmail Aphrodite in the end," Tohru sighed.  
>"Oh, come on!" Dionysus laughed. "If a woman sees the man she likes with another women, isn't it natural to get mad?"<br>"It depends on the woman, I think," Hermes said without much of a thought.  
>"No-no-no! He is right!" Tohru said standing up.<p>

Of course, Dionysus point seemed out of place but he was right, that was the only thing they could use, or maybe the only option they had available since he couldn't see another way. Tohru walked back and forth into the room playing with a lock of his hair. Kei had a lot of fans, and according to his target group the most of them should be high school girls. So, since it was impossible to make his audience disappear, then they could at least lessen it.

"He has a point. We have to find Kei a woman," Tohru said.  
>"Right? Right?" Dionysus said with enthusiasm, although Tohru doubted that he could understand what he meant.<br>"I'm sure that he can do that easily, he is popular and handsome...nothing like you," Hermes said finally letting Dionysus letting Dionysus fall.  
>"That hurt," Dionysus said laughing.<br>"Oh, thanks for the compliment," Tohru hissed. "Can you listen to what I have to say now?"  
>"Eagerly."<br>"Imagine that. The new idol, the one every little girl dreams she could date, gets a girlfriend. The result is?"  
>"The other girls crossly dump him!" Dionysus said raising a cup of wine.<br>"Exactly!" Tohru said pointing at him. "Maybe not _all_ of them, but many of them."  
>"So, he will be left with his 'true' fans only," Hermes said cupping his chin.<br>"Bingo!" Tohru said excited.  
>"Not bad at all! Better than nothing!" Hermes said. "Good job, Dionysus!"<br>"What?" Tohru asked in amazement.  
>"I'm glad I could help," Dionysus said taking a sip of his wine. "That's the stuff!"<br>"What about me?" Thoru asked following Hermes who was ready to leave the room.  
>"You'll get your praise when you plan something on your own," Hermes said turning to him. "What about that? Try to find a woman for Kei for now."<br>"What? What Dionysus said was only a hint!" Tohru protested but then an idea came to mind. "We can borrow a woman from him as well."

Hermes sighed and folded his arms. Tohru looked at him persistently, expecting Hermes to recognize his effort. In the meantime Dionysus had stood up, walk up to them slowly and finally hugged Tohru from behind and shuffled his hair. Tohru bristled at Dionysus show of affection, especially because he did it at that time, but once again Dionysus proved to be much stronger; he couldn't get away from his hug.

"He seems to be fond of you; lucky you, Tohru," Hermes snickered.  
>"Stop hug-"<br>"I'll be back soon," Hermes said. "Go back home with my brother and watch Dio for me," he said placing a key into Tohru's hand.  
>"What?"<br>"Oh, if_ you_ manage to find a woman for Kei at least, I _will_ praise you," he said speeding away.  
>"Hey! Doesn't this mean that I won't get a bonus?" Tohru called from behind.<p>

It was pointless, Hermes took off without an answer and he was left behind with a drunk god. Dionysus leaning on him, not letting go of his glass. Not only was it hard to move with Dionysus weight on his shoulder, but their height difference was noticeable as well. Tohru frowned trying to drag Dionysus along with him and it took a lot of time before he reaches the entrance, wondering why he had to babysit on the way.

"Excuse me, can you take us to-"

Tohru stopped his sentence when he noticed their lapel badge and cold sweat run down his spine. The two men, dressed in black, by the entrance looked at him coldly as Tohru tried to stay calm and composed. Dionysus on the other hand greeted his men nonchalantly.

"Can you take us back home?"  
>"Don't think that you can give us orders, young one. Master Dio gives the orders here," one of them said.<br>"Come on-come on," Dionysus laughed. "He is my brother's dependent and new around here, be nicer to him."  
>"As you wish sir," he said lowering his head.<br>"Take us back to his home, as he said," Dionysus ordered.

Tohru followed them cautiously, trying not to do any unnecessary moves, as the two men followed their boss orders obediently. Dionysus fall fast asleep as soon as he sat on passenger's seat; Tohru felt grateful for that for some reason. The rest of the ride was quiet. When they finally placed Dionysus inside Hermes' home and left, Tohru closed the door behind them with a great relief.

"Calm. Clam down Tohru," he said shuffling his own hair.

Tohru looked at the sleeping Dionysus nervously. He felt panicked and he couldn't believe his bad luck; maybe someone had cursed him or Hermes wasn't the god of luck after all. Maybe Dionysus' visit wasn't unintentional; that would make sense since he appeared suddenly without a good reason.

Tohru was sweating a lot already due to his disquiet and unable to think of something, he felt a great desire to call Hermes' and ask for help; but he couldn't. Αs he was pacing up and down all, his bad mood all over the room, he knew that he should think of something quickly and that it would be a miracle if they didn't know his identity yet. In front of him, he had a sleeping god and the boss of the Furukami Group, the group which was after him...


	5. Luck ain't even lucky

**Beta by**FallenAngelItachi

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><p>Whether you consider your self a lucky person or not, there will be a time you will come across a series of unfortunate events. Sadly, Tohru never considered himself a lucky person, quite the opposite; if he could, he would enter his name as the definition of bad luck in the lexicon. Overly dramatic he was, he was brooding over things in an exaggerated extent.<p>

There was his bad habit again**:** he was biting the nail of his thump, trying to come up with something; he had a god after him and an odd one on top of that. Maybe he should kill him, he thought, but he dismissed that idea quickly. He wasn't a killer and he doubted that he would be able to do something like that; his stress was piling up more and more, he shouldn't give in to strange ideas. How do you kill a god anyway? Maybe he should keep him eternally drunk; but how would that help? He wasn't thinking straight.

Tohru looked at Dionysus; he was sleeping peacefully, snoring lightly. If Hermes was there, he wouldn't worry much. He could use Hermes as a shield, Hermes would make a perfect shield since he was Dionysus' older brother! But then again, he didn't want to depend on Hermes again, the devious god would definitely take advantage of that fact later. Maybe he should keep quiet after all, there was still the possibility that Dionysus did not know who he was. Should he keep Dionysus tied with a rope until Hermes' return? But would a rope be able keep a god restricted?

"I have to think straight. Calm down, Tohru. Calm down. Okay, maybe I should take my revenge before I get killed," he said picking up a marker. "Here," he stood over the god, taking off the lid. " Take that, kyahahaha. Perfect."

Dionysus face was garnished with a beautiful, stylish, black mustache and glasses. Tohru sniggered a couple of times before he realizes the inanity of his actions. His lips twitched, fighting a nervous, crazy smile, and he threw the marker away. His soul wouldn't rest in peace because he scribbled on a god's face; that was definite.

"I'm loosing it," he admitted to himself. "That can be called a... Hubris? No, it could pass as an innocent prank, right?"  
>"Well, Dionysus can be a very understanding god," he heard behind him and jumped where he stood.<p>

It was Hermes, who appeared out of nowhere once again and he was peering **at** his brother's sleeping face. How long had he been there? Much to Tohru's surprise though, instead of scolding him, he expressed his joy that his apprentice was showing some hints of humor. He wasn't defined as a trickster for nothing.

"I'm sure that Dionysus will think that you think fondly of him. Maybe he'll think that you consider him as a friend already," he said with a sly smile.

'He is threatening me, I can feel it. He is mad, he is actually mad because I played a trick on his little brother,' Tohru thought, realizing that it wasn't a good time to ask for Hermes' help.

"It's not... permanent at least," Tohru said; a feeble excuse to placate a god.  
>"When you do something, do it like a man with no excuses," Hermes advised.<br>"Well, where did you go?" Tohru asked trying to change the subject.  
>"Firstly, did you find a woman?" Hermes asked back.<br>"Not... really... I haven't even searched for one yet," Tohru gulped and Hermes sighed.  
>"It's not that I was expecting much from you on the certain field since you actually have to search for one," he said with a disappointed expression and continued before Tohru manages to speak up for himself. "Anyway, I went to register Dionysus as my aide."<br>"What do you mean?" Tohru asked, his eyebrows furrowed.  
>"Well, in the game, every god has the right to use other gods, nymphs etc as his aid; since many wanted to join and supposedly it makes the game more interesting;<em> Athena and her ideas<em>. There are some terms though. We can't use a god who works under another one at the same time. A god can claim only one god as his main aide and use only up to three other gods simultaneously. However, in order to register a god as your main aide, you have to get the consent of the god himself. We are lucky that Dionysus found us on his own. This fellow knows how to hide well."

Tohru rolled his eyes. Since Hermes had registered Dionysus as their main aide, it meant that there were high possibilities he would have to spend time with Dionysus even without Hermes around. Maybe that was Dionysus' plan; to find the perfect chance to take his head without Hermes noticing and Hermes was giving him that chance lavishly.

"Why did you choose the god of wine as our main aide?" Tohru complained. "I'm sure that we could find a more useful god!"  
>"Like?"<br>"Like... Like I don't know! There are better choices around, aren't there?"  
>"Dionysus is more powerful than he seems and loved among gods, I'm sure that he will be of aid," Hermes protested.<br>"I... I see... Ok, do as you wish... I better go check my mails now..."  
>"What in Zeus' name where you doing until now?" Hermes asked raising an eyebrow.<br>"I... I was guarding Dionysus... like a vigilant knight?" Tohru faltered.

Hermes looked at him with a blank expression. He knew he didn't sound convincing – that went without a doubt- but since he didn't have any believable excuse other than the truth, he blurted the first thing that came to his mind. He had already made a fool out of himself a couple of times, thus he didn't have anything to loose by saying that anyway.

"I suppose that my brother will feel indebted when he hears about that," Hermes said arching an eyebrow, hands folded.  
>"Su-sure... Make... Make sure to tell him, I'll be grateful if you speak very highly of me before him now and then. Since we will be partners from now on, he has to a good impression of me, right?" Tohru asked moving slowly towards his room. "I did my best to guard him after all," he added giving thumps up.<p>

'Next time, first try, then buy,' Hermes thought laughing nervously. "Ok, rest assured."

"I'm going back to work now!"

His lips formed a nervous smile and he was sure that it didn't escape from Hermes' attention, but if his chance to avoid the worse was one in a million, he wanted to treasure that chance for as long as he could. Trying to calm down, he eased himself on his chair, opened his laptop and checked his mail. Nobu should have sen**t** the info by then as promised, and indeed he had.

Browsing through the profiles, he was keeping notes and marking whatever drew his attention. Nobu was right, this guy was either too clear or he had someone really powerful to back him up. In the end, whether he was clear or not, they would have to resort to gutter press if they wanted to give a critical hit to his fanbase, wishing his fans were not very loyal.

"Aahh... We are planning the downfall of a teen idol, it doesn't even sound evil," Tohru said leaning back in his chair with his hands behind his head and speared his legs sighing . "This is so stupid."

And while Tohru was doubting the quality of his mission, far-far away, in a huge mansion located in Tokyo's outskirts, their targets were enjoying their everyday routine, unaware of Hermes' plans. The base of Aphrodite's operation wasn't only a paradise for paparazzi but for the owners themselves. Fully equipped with the best accommodation while domestic staff was offering quality services, it was providing all the required creature comforts in an exaggerated degree.

There, while Aphrodite was savoring her daily cocktail, trying to relax beside the pool, the young idol was sweating under sun, following his daily practice. With a tennis racket in his hand, he was ready to win the last set and he did it. Flipping his hair, he turned towards Aphrodite with a victorious smile on his face.

"How was that? I feel like a pro tennis player now," his said with a rather emotionless voice.  
>"Can you stop playing on the wii for once?" Aphrodite asked.<br>"It's not like I have much to do after practice and photo-sessions, thanks to someone," Kei said.  
>"Keep this kind of snipes to yourself, I <em>am<em> the one building your career," Aphrodite calmly replied. "Men are always so ungrateful."  
>"Aren't you a man yourself, mister Aitarou," the young man snorted when he said the name.<br>"Can you stop snorting every time you say my name? The fact that your face is so expressionless on top of that while you are doing so, pisses me off."  
>"It's ok, I put a good act in front of my fans right? Isn't that what matters?" the young man asked swinging his racket.<br>"That's your only role anyway," Aphrodite said standing up. "I have to admit that you are doing a pretty good job. At this rate, winning is not impossible. Your fans become more and more by each passing day. It's not that you work for free though. Apart from the comfortable life you lead now, your wish will be granted if you manage to bring me victory."  
>"That's why I'm still here. There are only six months left, I live for the moment my wish will be granted... revenge must be a beautiful thing," he said swinging hard.<br>"That why _you_ humans are so foolish. Seeking revenge even when you don't have the power to, thinking that you will feel relieved and fulfilled when you finally take it, but even after that you never stop complaining and blaming others for your life and choices," Aphrodite chuckled. "Pitiful creatures."  
>"Don't patronize me, mister Aitarou," he snorted again. "I promise that I won't complain even once if you grant my wish... Oh, I think I've got the hang of it," he said checking out his racket.<p>

Aphrodite looked at her eccentric apprentice for a while without saying anything. His bleached, dark blond hair were simmering under the sun. Despite Aphrodite's scoldings he kept them messy when he was inside the house. Unable to go outside the house for non-professional matters, he was keeping himself busy with peculiar things, things Aphrodite didn't find amusing to the least.

He was a great finding, she had to admit that. A good voice, a better than the average appearance, and a person who could become very willing in order to achieve his aim. The results he showed in the six months he was working under her were more that good enough to keep her pleased and at the same time she was enjoying herself by trying something different. Her idea to come as a man in the human world was genius indeed, or at least that was what she thought.

"You are an odd one, what's so interesting about this thing?" Aphrodite asked taking a sip of her cocktail while watching the virtual match on the tv.  
>"It keeps me busy."<p>

"Mr. Iseki," their butler interrupted the conversation. "An envelop came for you."  
>"Thank you," Aphrodite said taking the envelop from the silver tray. "You may leave now," she added not even looking at him.<p>

The butler bowed and made three steps back before he leaves, as his master had commanded. Aphrodite read the contents of the envelop, not letting her cocktail from her hands. What she read though was enough to ruin her good mood. Furious, she crumpled up the paper into her hand and swat her glass on the table beside her.

"What happened?" the young man asked.  
>"Someone actually dared to snoop into my business again searching for information on you. Someone has to teach them some manners."<br>"Such a pity. I'm such an interesting person, I bet they would be thrilled if they were able to get a hand on my personal information. Kei; real name Ito Keitaro. Age; 20, height 1,75 cm, weight 60kg. Accused for-"  
>"Stop it! Do you think that it's safe to mention things like this here? You are mistaken if you do; respect my efforts to keep the whole thing secret."<br>"Aye-Aye, sir..."

Aphrodite had a bad feeling about that. Normally, mere reporters searching for a scoop weren't able to meddle into things far enough to be informed about that herself. Whoever that person was, she would teach him a lesson. She wouldn't give up her odds for a sure win because someone had decided to play the super-reporter. If something about Kei's past were to come under the spotlight the whole plan would be ruined.

"I'll be in my office. I'll go on a trip tomorrow to verify if my worries are arguable," Aphrodite announced. "I hope that you will follow your schedule properly even when I'm not around."  
>"Rest assured," Kei said with a deep voice. "I'm everyone's idol after all, I won't disappoint my fans," he added flipping his hair.<p>

Aphrodite nodded and headed to her office. Her apprentice scared her from time to time; it was like he had developed a split personality. The change in his altitude depending on the situation was annoying, impressive and creepy at the same time. She ran her fingers through her blond hair and looked into the mirror, pleased by her own reflection, smiling confidently. Things were simple, whoever that idiot who dared to challenge was, he would be crushed without question...

Incidentally, that idiot was unaware of the threat drawing near, but he had other things to worry about. Dionysus had woken up in a very bad mood; was that how a god was experiencing a hung over? For half an hour, he was trying to avoid flying objects trying while he was trying to serve Dionysus his coffee.

"Why the hell should I be the one to serve him? The coffee is cold already and... why coffee anyway, aren't you supposed to be gods? Seriously, were you expecting me to guard this thing while you were not around?" Tohru complained in a high pitched voice, trying to cover himself behind the couch.  
>"Don't worry, he will calm down soon and then he'll become the timid, loveable Dionysus you met once again..."<br>"Honestly, I don't know which is worse... Having an angry god throwing things at you, or having a cheerful god throwing himself on you," Tohru hissed. 'His personality worries me already, I don't want to be killed by this person...'  
>"Hey, you with the bushy eyebrows!" Dionysus called.<br>"What?" Tohru tensed. "He... He just called me..."  
>"Don't look at me," Hermes said averting his gaze.<br>"Wha- You think so too, right? Don't you dare call me like that!"  
>"Hey, bushy eyebrows, I told you I want wine, <em><strong>wine<strong>_," he repeated. "Drink that brown, tasteless thing yourself."  
>"Don't call me like that!" Tohru snapped. "You have to give me extra money for babysitting your brother."<br>"Oh, a vigilant knight would never say that, he wouldn't ask for a bonus either."  
>"A vigilant knight should stay as a vigilant knight though, he shouldn't have to prepare coffee for a god and act as his maid."<br>"A vigilant knight should overcome his trials without complaining."  
>"Screw the vigilant knight, we are talking about me and <em>I<em> want a damn bonus!" he barked. "And you shut up and drink the damn coffee," he said, towered over Dionysus. "Drink it!"  
>"I don't want too!" Dionysus cried as Tohru was trying to make him drink it forcefully.<p>

Hermes nodded to himself smiling. What a glutton, greedy, hot-tempered, proud, selfish, pessimistic, snotty and arrogant apprentice he got himself; things ought to be fun from that point, he was expecting much from him. Maybe his a little more training he would be proved deemed worthy as his pupil.

That day, Tohru felt regret; he hadn't take up those anger management classes when he had the chance. Considering the situation he had brought upon himself, they would have proved to be very useful after all... Life is unfair, life is a pain... Maybe I should try to be a better person, this must be my punishment and this coffee has indeed awful taste... thought the melodramatic young man.

Dionysus had beaten him once again and gave him a taste of his own medicine. Not bothering to blame himself for being physically weak, Tohru noted that they should buy a tasty coffee next time, with a flavor maybe, to make his defeat seem not so bitter...


	6. Work to make it work

A good sleep is a pillar of health; Tohru had realized that after looking at his reflection in the mirror. The black circles under his eyes looked like they were permanent for more than a week, even before he meets Hermes they were decorating his eyes in an bad way. Once again, he had a poor sleep, a damn poor sleep thanks to them; the godly duo as Hermes had called them. His apprentice was instantly convinced that his master hadn't put much thought on that and it was merely a product of his arrogance. Apparently Dionysus didn't want to sleep on the couch, so Hermes forced _him_ to sleep on the couch, despite his complains. He didn't find it comfortable to the least, not to mention that he fell down while he was sleeping and ended up spending the night on the floor.

"God of luck... yeah, right..." Tohru thought while he was brushing his teeth.

He flossed the water and then used the mouthwash; now he was all fresh and tidy. Yeah, right, he didn't even bother to brush his hair, he hadn't shaved for at least two days either. It's not like he was going to leave the house anyway. Maybe a beard would make him look more mature, more manly... Not really; Hermes would tease him even for that, he could foresee it. He pulled his skin taut; he tried to take a closer look of his face, pointing out his chin. Maybe he had to save after all, but then again, it was a pain to do so. He arched his eyebrows pouting.

"They are not bushy..." he frowned.

When did he start to care so much about his appearance and yet feel so lazy about it at the same time? Sighing and scratching the back of his head, he was cursing his luck for one more time while a brand new day was ahead. His day was his to feel pessimistic about every little thing and complain as much as he wanted; after all, that was his personal hobby.

"Tohru!"

It was Dionysus; Tohru felt chills running down his spine. Since he didn't know the true intentions the god of the wine had, he was still cautious around him. However, Dionysus seemed to be in a cheerful mood, unlike the attitude he had the night before, and that meant less verbal or physical abuse for him. But then again, what did Dionysus want from him so early in the morning? And Hermes was taking his time before he gets out of his bed; a paradox considering his position as a messenger.

"Oh, great..." he mumbled and exited the bathroom.  
>"Goodmorning!" Dionysus greeted in an apron.<p>

'Why an apron? Why a pink, ridiculous apron?' Tohru thought puzzled.

Dionysus was holding a wooden spoon. His pink apron was contradicting with his whole appearance, making the fact he was wearing an apron even more ridiculous. Why would the boss of a yakuza family wear an apron anyway? No, why would an ancient god wear an apron? It wasn't even funny...!

Tohru wanted to cry. They were messing with him, they were definitely messing with him!

"I tried to make pancakes!" Dionysus announced confidently.  
>"Pan... cakes?" Tohru asked confused. 'Why pancakes? Did he poison them?'<br>"Euh? They are not of your taste?" Dionysus asked blinking.  
>"I prefer Japanese style breakfast to be honest."<br>"Oh, and I woke up early to prepare them," Dionysus bemoaned. "Since we are partners now, I wanted us to create some bonds. Won't you try some?"

'Pancakes do not create bonds, why would pancakes create bonds between us? You just wanted to taste them yourself, you just wanted to eat pancakes, right?'

"Maybe I should try to learn how to make steamed rice next," he said flipping the pages of a recipe book. "I'm still new at this."  
>"There is no need to!" Tohru said drawing Dionysus' attention. "I can take care of my own meals. There is no reason to bother with that," he added in a lower voice.<p>

Dionysus looked at him blinking for a moment and scratched his head with the tip of the wooden spoon. The young apprentice could not figure out what the god was thinking, that pause was killing him. Maybe he shouldn't go against his whims and just play along. Maybe it wasn't wise to anger him by going against his will. It wouldn't be hard for Dionysus to kill him, or order his men to catch him; that much he knew. So, he decided to play it safe whenever he could.

"Ah... I mean..." he begun.  
>"What a well-behaved kid," Dionysus said pulling him into a hug.<br>"No... I... stop it..."  
>"You don't have to worry about things like this," Dionysus said messing Tohru's already messy hair. "I just have to learn how to make Japanese style breakfast, right? And here I thought that pancakes and stuff like these were popular these days."<br>"No, I..."  
>"Maybe I should make some meals we eat back home as well, I wonder if you will like them. Shall I make them? Shall I not?" the god wondered, turning over the kitchen counter.<br>"No, really..."  
>"What's with all that noise?" Hermes asked entering the room.<p>

The witty god yawned ans stretched his hands, his still sleepy eyes spotted the bowl with the strange mix on the kitchen counter as soon as he entered. Resting his head on his brother's left shoulder, he looked into the bowl curiously. He seemed musing for a moment, it was almost obvious that Hermes' hadn't involved himself in cooking before, despite the years, no the centuries, no the millenia he was living. Curiously, he put his finger into the mix. Now there was no way Tohru would taste that anyway; that was nasty.

"Hey, Dionysus. What's this strange thing? Is it eatable?"

Bingo... He was clueless after all...

"It's a mix for pancakes," Dionysus said. "It's my first time making something like that though. Here says..."

Gods should not be interested in cooking, should they? Tohru ignored them and headed to his laptop. His back was killing him, he was 22 years old yet he was acting like an old man. Great, not only was he forced to leave his house, he was also forced to leave his new bed. And there he was thinking that he would at least have a comfortable room to ease the miserable him.

"Tohru, pancakes?" Hermes asked, he sounded enthusiastic for some reason.  
>"Ice tea is good enough for me," he said sighing.<br>"And here I was thinking that you would be the coffee type," Hermes commented.  
>"I don't think that coffee would be suitable for my nerves right now, ice tea is good enough."<p>

That's right, he didn't have to eat pancakes and those two should be kind enough to serve him his morning tea. Finally, he would have a quiet moment and some time to work at peace while they would be busy with their precious pancakes.

"Tohru, we don't have ice tea," Dionysus called after a while.  
>"Coffee, just coffee then!" Tohru barked.<br>"Tohru!" Hermes called. "Go get coffee!"  
>"Wha- I'm busy!" Tohru protested.<br>"Who cares? Buy chocolate praline too!"  
>"Go get them yourself!"<br>"Don't defy a god, Tohru," Hermes said. "You shouldn't be so lazy!"

Tohru stood up furiously. Nice, he had also become his domestic servant. Should he curse him? Should he curse a god? Did he have to pay for them as well? Thoughts like those were passing through his mind as he was changing into his casual clothes. At least he was in Okinawa, so showing his face around shouldn't be a problem. His pursuer was living under the same roof with him anyway.

"Sorry, Tohru! I didn't know we needed that thing too. What's chocolate praline anyway?" Dionysus asked.  
>"Don't apologize to him," Hermes stopped him. "You shouldn't be so lazy, my apprentice."<br>"You are the one to talk!_ I_ don't have flying slippers you know," Tohru scoffed.  
>"They are not slippers!" Hermes snapped. "They are called sandals! Sandals!"<br>"Whatever," Tohru said exiting Hermes' home.

The weather in Okinawa was too hot for him, he suddenly felt the need for a dive underwater. How many years did he have to enjoy the beach? Some pedestrians looked at him curiously; he was a new face around and a gloomy one on top of that. Tohru sent them a glare; he wasn't in good mood and he just wanted to find a tuck shop**.** Picking up a fight would release a lot of stress but it would be unfair for his random victim.

Proud as he was, the idea to ask for directions didn't even cross his mind. And so, after twenty minutes of pointless search, he found convenience store; not exactly what he was looking for and had in mind, but he couldn't ask for more. Of course Hermes didn't bother to provide him with money, so he had to spent the few money he had left. Accursed pancakes; maybe it was Dionysus' way to torture him?

As he was leaving the convenience store behind him, his cell phone rang. With lethargic moves, he took his cell phone out. Somehow, he had no motivation whatsoever.; his job wasn't exciting, his client was more than annoying and he just wanted a break, why would he feel positive? Apparently the number was unknown to him, so he started at it with a blank expression on his face for a few seconds. He was ready to ignore the call when he noticed the first digits.

"0564...? Is that for Aichi prefecture?" he quickly answered his phone. "Hi, Fujita speaking."  
>"Fujita, this is Nagi," a girl spoke with a toneless voice.<br>"Oh," Tohru was surprised a bit. "I was expecting Nobu to call me."  
>"My foolish brother seems to be busy at the moment. So I was forced to call you instead."<br>"...Forced?"  
>"I have some interesting information. You might as well praise me when I tell you my awesome findings," she said with the same toneless voice as ever.<br>"Just get to the point," Tohru said getting impatient.  
>"Aren't you being chased, Mr. Informant? Are you sure it's safe to-"<br>"Do you think that it would be easy to track down my phone? Only trusted people know this one. Aren't you the one calling from a public phone anyway? Use your damn cellphone next time if you are worried about that. If they already know your connection with me, you probably have someone after you already.."  
>"No way. If I use my cell phone, you are going to ply the lovely me with love calls," she said.<br>"There is no way in hell I'd do that!" Tohru scowled. "Why would I do that?"  
>"Heeh? You are not cute at all," she said.<br>"Get to the point already."  
>"Okay. Well, it seems that the young man you are interested in was accused for the violation of one of his schoolmates for years ago. He was living around Nakagirisho back then. After three years of imprisonment, he was released because, according to the court, there was no actual evidence. The girl refused to talk to me when I told what was about... Hello, Fujita... Can you hear me Fujita?"<p>

The bag containing his grocery shopping fell of his hands. He couldn't believe what he'd just heard, his mind started working feverishly. How was such information concealed from the media for such a long time? And why would Aphrodite choose that guy as her apprentice while she would have to cover his past constantly? There should be a better candidate, without this kind of past and without this kind of accusations on his back.

"Violation..." Tohru repeated.  
>"And I was enjoying his music, what a pity... He didn't seem to be that type of guy..."<br>"Nagi, thanks for the info," Tohru said picking up the bag again. "I have to hang up now."  
>"Glad to be of service. Make sure to pay us well for that."<br>"Will do," Tohru said hanging up in hurry.

Despite the worrisome information he had received, Tohru laughed as he was passing by random locals who were giving him strange looks. At last, he would prove that his connections and himself were worthy enough to have their efforts recognized. Hermes had to praise him that once; he finally found the lead to face Aphrodite's apprentice. Without realizing it, Tohru had started to consider that case challenging. That's why, after trying hard to find his way back for more than ten minutes, he entered the house flushed and panting.

Hermes and Dionysus looked at him surprised, with their mouths full of pancakes. They were munching them rather happily. What was wrong with these gods; Tohru couldn't tell and he wasn't even sure if he wanted to know. He gave them and a stern look and threw the bag away. They already had put on chocolate praline on them, meaning someone had already bought some while he was away.

"Why the hell did you send me out there to buy chocolate praline if you were going to buy one yourself?" Tohru asked angrily.  
>"But you were late," Hermes countered.<br>"Calm down, Tohru" Dionysus. "It's not what you think!"  
>"Then go buy one yourself from the start!" Tohru barked. "And how is that 'it's NOT what I think'? Don't use such a cliche phrase even in this kind of situation. Actually, how many times have you used that phrase? And you are still munching the damn thing!"<p>

After his rage, Tohru looked at the two gods - who were looking at him with their mouths hanged - and panted. He rested a hand on his forehead, trying to regain his composure. He was getting frustrated easier and easier those days; that's why he liked to work alone, he was able to control his temper, work peacefully and have a better grasp of the situation.

"That was scary," Dionysus said, still holding his fork.  
>"Anyway... That's not the issue right now," Tohru said and took a seat at the table. "I've got some info on our man..."<p>

It didn't take long to analyze the information Nobu had sent him via mail and what Nagi told him about Kei's past. Both Dionysus and Hermes became very serious after they heard about the latter; it seemed that Aphrodite's choice troubled them as well. Tohru was watching closely the changes in their expressions. Dionysus was shocked the most and turned to Hermes rather worried.

"Hermes..." Dionysus started. "Aphrodite..."  
>"Stop. Aphrodite wouldn't make a choice like that without a reason," Hermes cut him.<p>

It was the first time Hermes looked upset; his eyes were glued on the floor. It was obvious that he was going over the facts inside his head, he had cupped his chin again; it seemed that it was a habit of his. Tohru titled his head, was it just because of the situation only or what was it because the situation was concerning Aphrodite that Hermes seemed to be emotionally disturbed?

"There is no way the goddess of love would aid and abet this kind of person, right?" Tohru asked pointing up a finger.  
>"That's right!" Dionysus said looking at Hermes. "There is no way Aphrodite-"<br>"It doesn't concern me. Aphrodite chose this person for a reason, I don't have the right to criticize her choice," Hermes said looking up. "And exactly because the one who chose him is Aphrodite, despite his circumstances, he is definitely a person who doesn't want to loose. We have to break his motivation," he added standing up.  
>"But, Aphrodite..." Dionysus tried to say.<br>"Dionysus!"  
>"Hold on a second!" Tohru said standing up. "According to Nobu, Kei's files seem clean to the public. Even reporters and paparazzi have it hard, his interviews are usually limited and short and he was always accompanied by his manager in the very few press conferences he has attended."<br>"Tohru, have you ever cross-dressed?" Hermes asked cutting Tohru's trail of thought.  
>"That's a stupid question. Of course I have-NO!" Tohru rolled his eyes realizing what Hermes had on his mind. "No, there is no way. There is <em>no<em> way."  
>"You can infiltrate the house working as a maid; this much I can do."<br>"No way. Let me go there as a man! I can even break through their security if it's necessary, but get that idea out of your head."  
>"He wouldn't look like a woman anyway," Dionysus mumbled.<br>"Supposedly, you should have found a woman until now," Hermes said arching an eyebrow. "But I'm very sure you haven't found one."  
>"We <em>don't<em> need one. And even if we do, Nagi can do it for a fair amount of money. Let me operate as-"  
>"Okay," Hermes cut him. "You have five days."<br>"I what? Five da-" Tohru protest violently against it.  
>"Five days. I want you to have Kei's morale crushed in five days," Hermes said folding his hands.<br>"Hey, Hermes. Five days only is too much-" Dionysus tried to persuade his brother.  
>"Five days Tohru," Hermes repeated. "Get ready, we're going to pay Kei's town a visit today. You need more info, right?"<br>"I do," Tohru said lowering his head.  
>"I wonder if you can do it..." Hermes said snickering. "You are just a common information broker after all, let's see what happens when you face the higher ups."<p>

Hermes left the room snickering, leaving Tohru and Dionysus alone in the room. Dionysus bewildered, looked from Tohru to Hermes and then back to Tohru. Giving Tohru a nervous smile, he stood up trying to appease the young apprentice before he explodes. Tohru was standing there, with his head still lowered and his fists balled.

"Don't misunderstand him-" Dionysus begun.  
>"You old snot with the flying slippers!" Tohru lashed out. "You will regret the moment you challenged me soon! Just wait and see!"<p>

Furious, Tohru rushed into his room, he had to prepare his stuff. Dionysus on the other hand stayed still and confused in the middle of the room. He was unable to finish his words more than once because of his bossy brother and the quick-tempered apprentice Hermes had recruited. Somehow, the god of wine had the feeling that the young informant had taken things too personal for his own good and that would lead them into a mess.

"A visit to Tokyo doesn't sound bad. Maybe I should call my son first..." Dionysus wondered. "And I didn't even get to finish my pancake..."

In the meantime Tohru had already phoned up Nobu, while he was in the process of getting his stuff. Surprised he was, Nobu listen to his orders patiently and without saying a word. His friend sounded more than furious and he knew very well that a random comment would easily pull the trigger.

"So I expect you to meet me in Seto tomorrow," Tohru said.  
>"What? In one day?" Nobu's voice sounded tremulous.<br>"Forget half of your payment and your bonus if you don't show up. Meet me outside of Kamagami shrine at 6.00am."  
>"But Fujita-Oh, well. I hope you have a good reason for this..."<p>

Suddenly he had forgotten Dionysus and his yakuza family, the pain in his lower back and his misery. Hermes' challenge had been accepted and it was time for more information gathering...

* * *

><p><strong>beta by FallenAngelItachi<strong>  
><em>Thank you.<em>


	7. Carry out everything

The sky was so clear, unstained by clouds, his deep blue was emerging firmly. Tohru hated that fact, he was on his four, facing the ground for more than five minutes. He was vomiting once again, much to Hermes disgust, unable to get used to that so soon. Why did they have to teleport every single time? It was certainly time-saving, but so painful at the same time.

In three words; he hated it. But then again, Tohru hated a lot of things. The blue sky, the chirping sound of the birds, the weird looks of the by-passers, his luck, the age he was living in, the boy who had just tossed a ball on his head and many more things. Hermes, immortal as he was, could take a century to list things Tohru hated or things he was going to hate through his life.

Unlike the other two, who didn't seem impressed at all, Dionysus was very excited. They had landed at the area around Kamagami Shrine, where they were supposed to meet Nobu the day after. Dionysus insisted that they had to pay their respects to the local god, an idea which seemed more than boring to Hermes' and Tohru's eyes. For Tohru it was a waste of time, he had only five days to accomplice his mission; why did he have to bother with something like this? As for Hermes, he could find no reason to pay respects to foreign gods.

However, Dionysus' nagging soon paid off and they gave in to his request. Tohru was sure that Hermes messed the shrine's etiquette on purpose since he wasn't very enthusiastic about that from the start. Dionysus instead, not only had he followed the instructions perfectly, but he appeared to be moved by that as well. The more Tohru was watching him, the more Dionysus looked like a normal person.

"I wish our temples were still like that," Dionysus howled. "It's so nice and peaceful here."  
>"This is no time for complains," Hermes scolded.<p>

The young informant snorted; Hermes' act to be mature in front of his brother seemed farcical. As they were going down the steps of the shrine, Tohru was checking the info he had gathered so far for one more time through his i-phone. Hermes mocked him; for a person who cared so much about money and was constantly complaining about them, it was strange to own so many high tech items.

Of course, someone as unrelated to technology as him could not understand, was what Tohru thought and smirked at Hermes' comment. Money used on stuff he needed for work were never wasteful. On the opposite, they were profitable, they were the mean to get even more money and money were one of the few things Tohru didn't hate on his planet!

"Where are we going now?" Dionysus asked.  
>"To Aihara Chouko's place; he is the one who accused Kei for her violation in the past," Tohru said coldly.<br>"And what do you mean to accomplice with that?" Hermes asked.  
>"I want to find out more about this case from people directly involved with it," Tohru replied calmly. "She is the best sour-Stop waving at highschool girls while I'm talking to you!"<br>"I couldn't help it, they were cute," Hermes said shrugging his shoulders. "I look like a university student, right? I bet they were happy a cool, handsome foreigner like me waved at them. So, why the ruckus?"  
>"<em>Because<em> we have a serious case in front of us, we don't have time to mess around!" Tohru explained.  
>"Heeh... Aren't you way too serious? That's why you are not popular with girls," Hermes said looking away.<br>"Don't ignore me!"  
>"Besides, you said that she refused to talk to your friend, who is apparently a girl. Why would she want to talk to you about that?" Dionysus asked blinking. "It's a sensitive matter, it won't be easy for her to discuss it with a stranger, who happens to be a man too."<br>"I'll persuade her," Tohru said determined.  
>"Try not to scare her with your face first," Hermes said.<br>"Thanks for the compliment," Tohru said sarcastically and, stubbornly, they turned their backs to each other.  
>"You really get along together," Dionysus said, distracted by a big girl holding an ice cream.<br>"We are not," they said in unison.

They didn't talk for the rest of their way. Tohru was consulting his GPS, declining Hermes' offer to transport them there. It was filthy enough that he vomited once already, not to mention that he had started to worry about his stomach's condition and the effects it had on it.

When they finally arrived at the foregone address, they hid behind the corner of a stone wall, so the girl wouldn't see them right away, and waited there for her arrival. Still, the image of three men waiting behind a wall with their head popping out of the corner aligned vertically, was beyond doubt suspicious. Still, no matter what Tohru said they refused to leave.

"Hey, Hermes," Dionysus who was under all of them whined. "Stop leaning on us so much, you are heavy."  
>"He is right!" Tohru took the chance to complain even more. "What do you think you are doing? Go and get your own corner if you want to see so much. You haven't even taken a look at her picture, so you won't recognize her anyway."<br>"I'm checking out the girls, who cares about the picture?" Hermes said.  
>"Hermes, it hurts," Dionysus whined again.<br>"Hey, this is the one," Tohru said confirming it with the photo.  
>"She seems to be accompanied by her friends," Dionysus noted.<br>"Come on, what are you waiting? Go and talk to her," Hermes told Tohru.  
>"But... She is not alone..."<br>"Oh, little Tohru is scared by a group of girls?" Hermes teased.  
>"I'm not scared! But I can't just walk to them and ask her for information like that. Her friends might scream and think that I'm a stalker," Tohru argued.<br>"You are right. With your face, I'd scream as well if I were in their place."  
>"You know, you-Hey! Where is Dionysus?"<p>

Without either of them noticing, Dionysus had already approached the girls who looked at him surprised, not only that, he had changed his appearance as well. Now long, dark blond hair with ringlets were resting on his shoulders and he looked younger too. Tohru's worry almost instantly turned into amazement when he saw the girls giggling. How could he be so relaxed in front of a bunch of girls he didn't even know? Naturally, Hermes didn't loose his time and followed his brother's lead, leaving Tohru behind.

That move enraged his young apprentice who was seeing his plans falling apart. While he was trying to decide what he was going to do next, he saw Dionysus pointing at him, while his left hand was resting on Aihara's shoulder. The girl blushed and looked down while the rest of the girls giggled. Tohru didn't even want to imagine what Dionysus had told her and made a few steps back. His mind was telling him to run away from the embarrassing situation, to run as fast as he could, but he had no choice but to stay.

"Tohru!" Hermes called. "We are going with the girls for a cup coffee. Go and get her buddy!"

Tohru's eyes rolled. It was clever and nice of them to create a situation where the two of them would be alone to talk, but why did they have to create _that_ kind of situation? Plus, there were going to mess around with girls while he would have to clear up the misunderstanding they had created and do the job by himself. He came up to her, looking rather anxious, while he was trying to find the right words in his head.

"Well... I..." he begun.  
>"They said your name it's Tohru," the girl said after a pause. "It's nice."<br>"Yeah, it uses the kanji for _carry out_," he said bored already. 'I guess my father wanted me to become a responsible person, that's kind of ironic.'

Tohru made a face, how cliché that conversation could turn out to be if he were to let her follow its natural flow?

"My name is-"  
>"Aihara Chouko, 20 years old. You attend the law department of Nanzan university," Tohru said with an emotionless voice.<br>"I presume we attend the same university?"the girl asked blinking.  
>"I guess that wasn't very clear," Tohru sighted taking out his notepad. "Let me continue then... Aihara Chouko, has attended Seto Nishi High school till her third year".<p>

The girl looked taken aback by those words. Bull's eye. Tohru snorted, it was his time to shine and he had the girl right were he wanted. Despite his complains about his master's schemes, the young informant had a rather sadistic nature himself when he knew he had the upper-hand. Thus, the girl's shocked face didn't have much impact on him.

"She transferred schools and entered Seirei Girls High in her third year, under circumstances that are almost unknown. Of course the Aihara Shouko we are talking about is you, ain't I right?" he cocked his head to the right. "Why a Girls' High I wonder, and why a sudden transfer? Oh, not to mention that the whole matter was concealed and only a few gossipers live to carry on random rumors," he added pointing up a finger. "So, I guess you could enlighten me a bit about what happened. No, you are the only one who can do that. If a plea is not enough, there is always the option of a payment!"

The girl made a few steps back obviously shaken, she was looking at him like he was a freak. And he was, he wouldn't step down when he was close to the source of the info he wanted and that could easily turn him into a jerk. It would be natural to be mistaken for a stalker too; it had happened a couple of times in the past. He didn't care though, maybe he enjoyed it a bit when he couldn't relate with his targets; especially when the case was interesting enough.

"Just who do you..."  
>"Hm?" Tohru arched an eyebrow.<br>"Leave me alone," she said eventually and turned her back to him, ready to enter the garden of her house.  
>"I won't stop," the girl turned to him surprised by his words. "Just so you know, I won't stop before I find the info I want."<br>"You better..." the girl make a pause for a moment. "You better forget this case. Just like I did," she said running towards the entrance of her home.

"Oh, please spare me the drama," Tohru said when she finally entered her house. "Is she stupid or what? She didn't even ask me if I was a cop or a defective. Why are they almost never cooperative from the start?" he wondered kicking the wall. "Like hell you forgot. Damn it... that hurts..." he moaned leaning down to touch his toes.

Aihara's attitude was odd and confusing. She seemed to be afraid of something else much more than the stranger in front of her door. Studying the situation, he had already come to the obvious conclusion that Aihara's refusal was either because of her fear of Kei... or someone else was involved in the case as well. He didn't have the chance to bring up Kei's name in front of her, maybe he should be able to see the case from another point of view if he had seen her reaction.

Reaching his pocket, he took out his cellphone and dialed a number quickly. It was time for plan B, the time limit was pressing him. If the situation was still in his hands, he wouldn't push things so much, but he now doesn't have another choice, though he didn't even bother to find one. Moreover, the next step was rather embarrassing for him too.

Nobu answered the phone quickly as usual.

"Nobu, proceed to Plan B, the first step didn't go well," he said but Nobu laughed as a respond. "Why the heck are you laughing?"  
>"I'm sorry, it's rather funny even before it happens. I bet that the girl will be surprised too, but just imagining your face... is so damn funny."<br>"I'm a professional! I can handle even a situation like that perfectly!" Tohru answered back flushed.  
>"Okay, okay, We'll be there tomorrow along with your suit. I'm on my way now."<br>"Don't be late."

Assuring him that he wouldn't be, Nobu laughed and hanged up. Yet, Tohru had other things to worry about at that moment. Except of the so called plan B, he had to find Hermes and Dionysus who were probably fooling around with those girls while he was taking care of everything. Well it was his job, but it was also _their _job and especially Hermes' job. If he wanted to win, he had to lend a hand as well.

"Hermes!" Tohru called.  
>No response...<p>

"Come here, you lazy god!"

And finally, instead of Hermes, Dionysus appeared, in his usual form. Just great...

"I think I called for Hermes," Tohru said frowning.  
>"Well, he accompanied a girl to her home, so I guess he will be busy for a while," Dionysus said scratching his cheek nervously. Oh! But he has a message for you!"<br>"What kind of message?" Tohru asked, a bit surprised.  
>"God helps those who help themselves. And he added that your words weren't provoking enough," Dionysus said smiling confidently that that would ease Tohru's temper; who knows why.<br>"This jerk..." a vein trembled on Tohru's forehead. "I wish you won't score with her even once!" Tohru yelled drawing the attention of those around.  
>"Well, that's a bit-"<br>"Let's go Dionysus, we don't need him," Tohru said leading the way.  
>"Euh?"<br>"What are you waiting for? We are going back to the shrine."  
>"Oh. Sure. Are we going to spend the night there?" Dionysus asked.<br>"Of course, I have no intention of touching my bank account for now and I do not wish to use your money either. Spending a night at the shrine shouldn't be a problem."  
>"Ah, it sounds fun actually. I wonder if we will meet the local deity this time!"<br>"And I'll, make sure Hermes will regret it for neglecting us," Tohru said with a stern voice.

And Hermes, later the same day, semi-regretted it indeed when he listened to Tohru's complains for more than half an hour. No that he cared much. Nevertheless, having someone whining over your head is troubling and annoying. Plus, he always found the others' irritated faces to be amusing, particularly when he had enjoyed himself beforehand.

"Well, at least I had fun. I bet the girl had fun too, it was today's good deed," he said pointing out his tongue.  
>"You are a pervert," Tohru said in disgust.<br>"Well, I, at least, am not a closet pervert like you," he said shaking a finger at him.  
>"Wha-"<br>"I bet you are jealous of the charming me," he added folding his hands.

A kick landed on Hermes' belly, the Greek god was taken by surprise. Feeling the situation getting out of hand, Dionysus tried to hold Hermes' back, but not in good time. Hermes had managed to land his own kick on Tohru, making his cheeky apprentice collide on the shrine's walls. Tohru could hardly move after that.

"Hermes stop. This is a sacred place. We shouldn't cause such a ruckus," Dionysus reasoned.  
>"Whatever," Hermes consented to Dionysus words with a shrug.<p>

Tohru smiled; at least he had managed to land a hit. The delight he felt in that specific moment was worthy of many minutes of pain. He simply took the chance and he wasn't going to regret it. Satisfied and somehow pleased with himself, he fell asleep easily, in fact he just lost his consciousness. The wooden floor of the shrine was cold...

That was enough to make him wake up in a very bad moon the next morning, only to realize that the selfish gods had made him their night pillow. No wonder his body felt heavy again. Sighing, he just pushed them away and took a look at his watch.

"5:30," he mumbled. "I slept for 5,5 hours and I feel like I didn't sleep at all."

One hour later a car entered the area around the shrine with high speed. Tohru stood up, watching the too passengers getting out of it. The male called from afar and started to charge up the stairs while the girl behind him was following him nonchalantly. The young man's, almost bald head shined under the sun, while a pink and yellow big wisp was blew back by the wind.

"You are late," Tohru scolded him as soon as Nobu stepped on the shrine. "It's 6:37."  
>"I'm happy to see you too," Nobu said with a frozen smile on his face. "How are you?"<br>"I don't have time for this," Tohru said, shaking his head vaguely. "We have to get straight to the point."  
>"'Morning," the girl who was following behind had finally caught up. "'Sup?" she asked, blowing a bubble gum.<br>"You were late, don't act so carefree," Tohru told her off.  
>"It can't be helped," she answered back. "Everyone has his own pace. I had to dress up first, I'm a girl after all," Nagi said with her usual emotionless voice, flipping her hair.<br>"I don't see a differen-"

"A girl?"

The one who interrupted his words was, of course, Hermes; who had woken up and was looking around sleepily. Both Nobu and Nagi looked at him blinking, surprised by the presence of a stranger. Tohru pressed to fingers to his temple, his so-called master had found the worst timing to wake up. Did he have a girl radar or something?

"This is Hermes," Tohru introduced him.  
>"Hermes? That's a cool nickname!" Nobu commented. "I suppose your are Fujita's partner!" he laughed. "Nice to meet you."<br>"Correction; I'm his master," Hermes said laughing, appearing right in front of him all of sudden.

Nobu let a scream and fell back, pointing at Hermes' in fear. The young man wasn't the bravest person in the world, but he had an excuse for his panicked reaction that time. You can't see things like that everyday. His own sister by contrast was clapping rather amazed, as if you could describe a person who looked like she was ready to fall asleep with those words. The two siblings were polar opposites; Nobu's emotional, talkative and cheerful nature was nothing like his reticent, sarcastic, nonchalant sister's.

"Greek god, at your service," Hermes added bowing. "There is no reason to be afraid."  
>"No, he is not a lunatic," Tohru answered to his friend puzzled face. "You'll get used to this sooner or later. I'm still trying by the way..."<br>"A Greek... god?" Nobu repeated looking at Hermes from head to toe.  
>"What happened?" Dionyus asked yawning. "Hermes, did you get into a fight with Tohru again?" he asked rubbing his eyes.<br>"And apparently this is Dionysus," Tohru said patting Dionysus' head as he was passing by.  
>"Nice one, Tohru! You almost got me," Nobu laughed.<br>"Do I look like a joker?" he asked with a stern voice, searching for his bag.  
>"Not really," Nobu answered with a nervous smile.<br>"Welcome to my life then," Tohru said opening his rucksack. "Move it, Dionysus. It's not your pillow."  
>"Sounds fun," Nagi said. "Can they throw thunders and stuff?"<br>"Not really, they are pretty useless in fact," Tohru asked.  
>"Little Tohru, that's not a kind thing to say," Dionysus bemoaned. "No wonder dad is so popular. What's with human and thunders anyway?"<br>"You tell me," Hermes agreed.  
>"I'm going to get the suit," Nobu said, still confused.<br>"A suit? For what? Are we going to a party?" Hermes asked.  
>"For Fujita's Omiai," Nagi said chewing her gum slowly, very slowly.<p>

If there was something Hermes despised, was to be ignorant of things. Since, even Dionysus seemed to know what 'omiai' meant, he hated the fact that he would be forced to ask for it's meaning sooner or later. Trying to avoid it as much as possible, he tried to act natural.

"Ah, I see-I see," he simply said.  
>"Hermes, omiai is an arranged meeting with a prospect of marriage," Dionysus explained.<br>"I already knew that! What did you have to explain it?" he asked red with embarrassment.  
>"That's because if you knew, you would have made fun of Tohru already."<p>

That was true of course; Hermes had a great urge to tease Tohru, and his wish to prove Dionysus wrong was the only thing holding him back.

"Who is Tohru anyway?" Nagi asked.  
>"Euh? That's Tohru," Dionysus said pointing at his brother's apprentice.<br>"That's Fujita," Nagi argued.  
>"Tohru is his real name," Hermes said.<br>"Hoooh... Brother! Fujita's real name is Tohru!"  
>"Idiot!" Tohru called surprised.<br>"Heeeh? Really?"

Nobu came running, while holding a black suit. For some reason he looked excited. On the other hand, Tohru was slamming the shrine's floor with his fists. The two gods had no idea about what was going on with him, but they didn't care either. While Tohru was sobbing, they turned to the two siblings, completely ignoring him.

"So, why an omiai?" Hermes' asked.  
>"The girl was going to attend one today. It seems that her parents are forcing her to get in a relationship and get married quickly," Nagi explained the situation. "Fujita... No,<em> Tohru <em>insisted that if I registered him with fake personal info, including a fake name and job, he could create a situation where the girl would not be able to run away easily. In order to do that, he has to play the role of the potential groom."  
>"I think that the girl can see the photo of the man she is going to meet beforehand though," Dionysus said scratching the back of his head. "I saw it once in a drama."<br>"I photoshoped his photo," Nagi said giving a thump up. "I'm a master when it comes to misleading information, false personal information and photoshop. In short; I'm a forger. By the way, I gave you really long hair and a mustache; which was actually fun, they didn't suit you at all."  
>"Ah... He is so down, he didn't even responded to that," Dionysus commented blinking.<br>"Of course I am!" Tohru protested and stood up quickly.  
>"Here he comes," Hermes sighed.<br>"It's your damn fault," he said, striding over to him. "I lost the bet and now I have to pay him. It's your damn fault!"  
>"Ok, I understand, but why do you have to cry, man?" Hermes asked puzzled, while Tohru was shaking him.<br>"My money, I have to give him money... my money... my beautiful, crispy money..." he said taking the suit from Nobu's hands with a blink expression.

Hermes and Dionysus' puzzled faces were more than understandable. The young informant had more than a simple addiction to money; he loved them with passion. According to Nobu, Tohru was one of those persons who were considering money, not only as a sign of power but also a need and a way to live. And that need was developed in very strange way through years, so scary that it was almost scary. Tohru wasn't making money to live, he was living to make money.

"We had a bet; he said that he would pay me 21,000 yen if I found out his true name," Nobu said proudly. "Though I didn't find it out on my own in the end."  
>"Don't mind him, he will recover sooner or later," Hermes said. "Oh, he is fast."<p>

"Let's go..." Tohru said like a robot.  
>"I brought a wig and a mustache just in case," Nagi said.<p>

When Nagi made him wear them, he didn't even react... Although his expression had turned somewhat dark after his return. Everyone knew that it wasn't a good sign. But as Tohru was mourning the loss of his money and the others were worried about his weird behavior, somewhere far-far away someone else was entering his house furiously and when that person was furious, he wouldn't stop until he gets his revenge, or should I say, she wouldn't stop until she gets_ her_ revenge.

"I knew it was him," Aphrodite slammed her hand on the table. "That damn trickster, what did I ever see in him?"  
>"Manager... this trampoline is great..."<p>

Aphrodite looked at him in dismay, her weird apprentice had discovered yet another weird hobby to pass his time. Maybe she shouldn't have his wii confiscated before she leaves. But she didn't have time for that, the news she got were enough to cause her anxiety and concern, her apprentice weird tastes and hobbies could wait for later. Hermes was after her and he had dared to involve Dionysus into his plans as well; that made two of them. Those traitors should learn not to mess with her.

"Kei, I hope you are homesick. We are going to visit your hometown tomorrow," Aphrodite said filling her glass with wine.  
>"Manager, I'm not homesick at all," he said doing a somersault. "I don't want to see my town... They could all rot and die, so much I care."<p>

The young idol said that with a very expressionless face, his voice had no color. Aphrodite knew very well that he wasn't joking about that, she knew that from the beginning. Maybe it wasn't a good idea, and the only thing she could say to motivate him would definitely make him snap in his own way. How many choices did she have anyway? She didn't want to loose and she definitely wouldn't give Hermes the pleasure to see her loosing without a fight. No, there was no way she would loose!

"He is after your past you know... Hermes' apprentice. They say that he is rather devious, like his master. At this rate, not only he will beat us, but unlike you, he will get his wish fulfilled," Aphrodite fibbed.  
>"Is that so..." the young man stopped all of sudden. "His name is...?"<br>"Fujita Rei," Aphrodite replied.  
>"Then this Fujita Rei, I will crush him, before he gets me crushed..."<p>

He was serious, though someone couldn't tell from his face. His master knew that very well though, she was expecting that kind of reaction. As Kei was leaving the room, a smirk played on her lips; she was going to win that race... Kei hesitated for a moment before he leaves the room. He never wanted to go back to that place, to that town, to his house, at least not before he had enough power to go back with his head held high.

If someone could go back four years ago, he could see a young man, with messy hair; immersed in repulsion as he was pushed and ridiculous until he enters the police car. Images he would not forget, days into prison that were engraved in him forever, but foremost the disgust he felt for those around him were what opened his eyes. What he did was not something we would regret, or whine about. His strong loathing for his town and its people wouldn't go away, but the fact that someone was investigated what happened four years ago, messing both his and their past and present, was aggravating him. Crush before you get crushed... that's what life had taught him.

The goddess of love showed him pity, she opened her hands and welcomed him. Despite her surprised look, he told her his wish, and she didn't criticize him. He chose him, he gave him a new life, maybe dull and boring sometimes, but with a surprising warm feeling. He wasn't a knight, he would never declare that that he'd give his life to protect someone out of clear pure ideals. But Aphrodite had given him an order; a person wanted to mess up his life once again, he just had to protect what he had for his own interest...

* * *

><p><strong>Beta by<strong> Fallen Angel Itachi (Thank you)  
>Also Artemis the Moon Maiden, thanks a lot for your support.<p> 


	8. Good luck, my apprentice

You should be thankful for every experience you have in life; with experience comes great wisdom. With wisdom comes respect. With respect... No, he didn't really care, the young apprentice wasn't chasing knowledge for recognition and deference. It was always for his own curiosity and money. Money; such a sweet word. So, the experience he was going to have that day seemed ridiculous, embarrassing and meaningless, but it was his own idea.

Once more, he found himself looking at his reflection in the mirror which, for first time in months, was looking a bit better. Looking at the results, he could admit that he understood a bit why women loved cosmetics and all these stuff that were supposed to make you beautiful; such a waste of money, he always thought. But a little bit of make-up and the dark circles under his eyes were finally gone. How many years had passed since he had last seen himself looking kind of healthy?

Still, it seemed that he didn't leave an impression to everyone else. The reason was obvious to him; the two men, who were standing beside him with curious looks on their faces, were what someone would call extremely handsome without person bias. Tohru didn't know if he was jealous of them or just disappointed by his own features. Even with make-up, his looks were just average. Sighing, he tossed the mirror into Nagi's bag.

"Don't sulk, I did my best," she said blowing her bubble gum. "I can't perform miracles though."  
>"Oh, thank you. That helps a lot," he was obviously annoyed by the comment.<br>"Don't worry Tohru. You'll still have a chance -_maybe_- even with your below-average looks, gods are merciful" Hermes said patting his back.

'_Bellow average?_'

"Don't tease him Hermes,"Dionysus scolded his brother. "Love is not all about appearance, so you don't have to worry Tohru!"

'_You are supporting what he just said in one way! How is that supposed to help? Why did you think that this is supposed to make me feel better. Are you an idiot? Are you just an naïve idiot?_' Tohru balled his fists.

"Nah, I think that his personality is the main problem," Nobu pointed out. "Appearance has nothing to do with how popular he is."  
>"So he sucks in both personality and outward appearance," Hermes concluded.<br>"It doesn't matter! Don't worry Tohru, these things doesn't matter in friendship!" Dionysus gave him a thump up.

'_Who cares about friendship? Since when you are considered my friend anyway? Your family is after my freaking head!_'

He couldn't handle it; he was barely holding back his nerves. These guys kept insulting him one after another making him even more anxious and he was supposed to meet the girl in a few minutes, the last thing he had the luxury to worry about was his appearance. They should be more considerate of his situation, but no, he could swear that they were talking about his eyebrows again. His eyebrows were just fine the way they were, why did they even care about them?

"Mr. Yanaihara Kane," a woman called.  
>"What kind of name is that?" Dionysus laughed and Tohru hid his face in embarrassment.<br>"Well, I thought it should be uncommon in order to catch her attention," Nagi said pointing out a finger. And since he seems to like money, 'Kane' is a suitable name for him."  
>"That's true," Hermes nodded in agreement.<br>"Oh, shut up," Tohru mumbled standing up. "Aihara and Yanaihara, it sounds ridiculous on its own."  
>"You may proceed to the designated room. Miss Aihara will join you in a couple of minutes."<br>"Sorry for the trouble, Mrs. Yamanobe," Tohru said slightly bowing while scratching the back of his head. "I'm a little nervous, but I'll go there immediately."  
>"You don't have to be, I'm sure you will make a good match. Follow me please."<br>"Ah, you think so?" he asked with his modest smile. "I hope that I'll make a good impression."

'_Who is that man_?' Hermes and Dionysus' thoughts united and they looked at him with his mouths hanging.

No matter how grumbling and neurotic Tohru could get, when it went down to business he could easily change his personality and manners in order to have his job done; at least that was what Nobu told them. Since they had already witnessed a sample of that, it wasn't hard to believe it. Maybe it should be so much better if he was like that all the time, but then again, that wouldn't be fun for Hermes who enjoyed torturing others in daily basis.

As for Tohru, who couldn't care less for their reaction, he was already waiting for the girl to come. That didn't take long, after a couple of minutes a young woman entered the door followed by Aihara. He was pleased to see that the signs of her uneasiness were clearly abashed on her face when he finally glanced at him. The fact that he was smiling with a fake innocent smile, almost caused her a feeling of fear. She had understood the situation too late for her own good; as a matter of fact Tohru hadn't tried hard to conceal himself. A pair of glasses and a wig with slightly longer hair didn't change his appearance enough to make him unrecognizable. Well, the mustache he had in his photo, which he had denied to use for the occasion, was another issue.

She stayed silent, with her eyes fixated on the floor, while the young woman was serving them green tea and traditional Japanese sweats. Her hands were playing nervously with the fabric of her kimono; the young informant wanted to laugh. When you have someone you consider a threat or an enemy in front of you, you shouldn't look away from them, otherwise you would loose the battle from the start. That said, he was confident he had already won the first battle.

"You are even more beautiful from up close, miss Aihara," he finally spoke. "That makes me feel grateful that you are here to see me today."  
>"That..." Aihara struggled to make the words come out of her mouth.<p>

The young woman smiled at Aihara's apparent cute, shy behavior and stood up with a nod towards Tohru, sign that she had finished her job and she were to leave the room. That made Aihara even more nervous, anyone would be able to see that she wanted to ask the young woman for help. But she couldn't do it; accusing someone for being a stalker so randomly and while they were through that kind of occasion was out of question.

"Ah, thanks for your service," Tohru said as the woman was sliding the door of the room slowly, the woman smiled as a respond.

Aihara looked at him with her eyes rolled, full with fear, and then she turned to the young woman as her last attempt to plea for help, maybe the woman would be able to read her expression. Of course it was no use; disappointed she saw her last hope fading. Were Tohru her, he still could not understand the reason she was so terrified. Even if she was considering him a stalker, they were in a place with so many people around, he wouldn't be able to try something funny even if he wanted to.

"Miss Aihara studies law from what I know, you must be a very smart person," Tohru said with a smile every common salary-man would envy.  
>"Drop the act," she gasped.<br>"Excuse me?"  
>"I said drop the act!" she said in a high tone, more demanding.<br>"If you wish."  
>"Why are you here? Who are you? Didn't I tell you to stop?"<br>"My name is Fujita Rei, my occupation should not be something to concern you, but as you should have guessed already I'm not a very lawful person."  
>"That much I know," she said, she wasn't even looking at him as they were speaking.<br>"I'm here to find more about the events of four years ago-"  
>"You should stop," she interrupted him.<br>"Why?"  
>"I don't care if you are a lawful person or not, just stop for your own sake. What are you trying to accomplice? Who sent you?"<br>"I can't reveal neither my motives nor my objectives, you wouldn't believe me anyway. But... miss Aihara, why are you so afraid?" he asked.

After that question, the girl tensed even more and glanced all around the room. The young apprentice was convinced that there was something wrong by the way she was acting; it wasn't hard to tell. Who could possibly spying on them there? She didn't responded to his question, confirming that his assumption was probably right.

"Miss Aihara, do you know Kei?" he asked more softly.  
>"Kei..." she was almost in tears.<br>"His real name is Kusanagi Keisuke."  
>"Keisuke... Keisuke was... no..."<br>"You know him, right?"  
>"No!" she said jerking back. "Stop. Was he the one who send you to me?"<p>

She was already loosing her reasoning; why would someone try to find information of past events if he was sent by someone directly involved with them? Unless she was under the wrong impression that he was sent to torture her...

"It wasn't my fault... It wasn't just my fault..." she said.

The girl was in tears, her fingers were tangled between her hair while the pupils of her eyes dilated. Without realizing, Tohru had triggered something inside her, something that was probably locked away for years. He had never thought that she'd react that way. Trying to calm her down, he grabbed her hands and looked directly into her eyes.

"I'm not here to harm you, Aihara," he said as calm as possible. "The reason I'm investigating this case doesn't lie to anything like revenge or personal grudges. Listen to me."  
>"No."<br>"Why are you so afraid?"  
>"He... He will come back. I don't want to," she almost screamed, trying to push him away.<p>

Ever heard of the word gentleman? Well, Tohru never had a good relationship with it, thus, annoyed by her behavior he slapped her hard. The girl stayed there, frozen, with a blank expression for a couple of minutes; her sight was so pitiful that, even though he didn't regret it, he felt kind of guilty. She didn't scream, she just tilted her head, touching her red cheek.

"This is worse than a drama. I bet housekeepers would love it, but I don't have time for this. Listen, Aihara. You don't have to answer immediately after you hear my offer. I'm a professional, I like to do things my own way and you can help me get over with this case quickly. I want to know what happened; _you_ know what happened, so you are my most treasured source of information right now," the girl turned to him with that hollow expression on her face. "I won't ask you to help me for free, I stopped believing that someone would help someone else out of kindness a long time ago. Of course I'm not here to help you either, I'm here for my own personal reasons and to tell you the truth... I don't like it. So, tell me what happened and I will grant you one wish; money, fame, I will help you with whatever you desire."  
>"You are funny," she responded after a few minutes. "Are you sure that you can grant my wish?"<br>"I will."  
>"...It happened four years ago," she begun. "At that time, I was still attending Seto Nishi high-school. Kusanagi Keisuke was my classmate. I had talked to him only a bunch of times. He was considered a weirdo at school, he had only a couple of friends and was usually gloomy. Most of the time he was listening to music, he had a weak presence in our classroom so no one really paid attention to him," she smiled. "I'd seen him smile a couple of times while he was alone with his music. It was strange. The kids in our classroom didn't have a problem with him, since he was usually very kind towards everyone; if you'd ask him, he'd help right away. That day... he confessed to me. The gloomy Keisuke confessed to me. I rejected him; he was a casual target of jokes in my group. It wasn't that I disliked him... But I was a teenager... I was ready to do anything to fit in with the others. Getting a boyfriend like him was not an option I'd consider. Wouldn't you do the same?" he asked turning to him.<br>"If you expect me to answer _yes_, you got the wrong person," he answered.  
>"Of course," she said averting her eyes again. "The current me wouldn't have either done that either. That day, I went to karaoke with my friends. Everyone was mocking his daring confession, I too laughed at him. My group was accompanied by another group consisted of popular guys. I had fun; I had completely forgotten the expression of the rejected Keisuke. You know, that day, he just nodded and told me that it was natural that I had rejected him with a smile," she run her fingers through her hair. "One of the guys offered me to accompany me home. He was handsome, popular and the son of a wealthy family; I was happy. I accepted his offer; how naive I was. On our way home, two guys appeared out of nowhere. I can still remember their smiles, their faces. I turned to him, thinking that I was lucky I was accompanied by a guy that night. But... He had the same scary expression on his face. The next moment, I had inhaled something strange and I was being dragged into an alleyway. They... They..." her voice trembled.<br>"You don't have to say it," Tohru said. "It's ok..."  
>"I became filthy," she said hugging her knees. "They turned me into a filthy woman. I could feel it. My parents wouldn't even look at me when they learned what had happened, my friends wouldn't go near me. Of course I told the officers, I told my parents... I knew the guy, everyone knew him, my so-called friends knew him, but none of them testified. Even our lawyer quit soon after... It was like no one had believed my testimony. The one who did that to me was still free and I couldn't accept it. But Keisuke believed what I had said... You know what? When he found out he became so angry. He had came to my house to ask me personally about that guy. I'd never seen Keisuke angry before. The next day he was in the news. He was accused for my violation...but, they only thing he had done in reality was to punch that person. They were too powerful. I was afraid that they would do something to me to shut me up. Strange ideas were passing through my mind. And the next day, they gave me an offer... And I accepted... I walked into the court and accused Keisuke for what had happened..."<br>"So Kei..."  
>"Keisuke had nothing to do with that. He was accused for my own selfish reasons. My family turned a blind eye and accepted that solution. I pushed the blame to him. He had no alibi, he didn't even try to defend himself. I still remember his expression that day... It was so... empty. No one defended him, not even his parents... It was cruel... I know it was cruel... I sent Keisuke behind bars and yet I continued to live a happy life, surrounded by people. I made new friends, I finished high-school... I study law right now... and yet I still feel so filthy..." she said looking at her palms.<p>

Silence prevailed; the young man wasn't expecting that kind of story. It was like someone was narrating a scenario of a poorly written, old movie. It wasn't that he didn't consider her circumstances serious, he wasn't approving what they had done to her in any way too. But the heroine of that story was so weak that he wanted to puke.

"You are a filthy person," he said.

The girl looked at him shocked; it was obvious that no one had talked to her that way before. In situations like hers, everyone would pity her and offer her sympathy coated with beautiful words. Whether it was with good intentions or not, they didn't help, they never would. She was lost in her own poorly written, dramatic role, mourning for her lost dignity, for the chances she had lost, the innocence she had lost, like the tragic heroine of her own contrived world...

"Though, you are not filthy because of what they did to you that night. You are filthy because you abandoned your fight...because you accused someone else for that..."  
>"I know," she said with a soft smile. "Though you are they first one who told me that. Back then, I wish my father or mother had told me those words. But they were too, afraid... You are an honest person."<br>"And a rather hypocritical one as well," he said. "I never said that I wouldn't have done the same if I were in your shoes, though I consider me to be stronger than that."  
>"As I said, you are an honest person," she chuckled. "You didn't avert your gaze even once while I was telling you my story... Do you want to hear my wish?"<br>"Huh."  
>"The person who did that to me that day... please destroy him."<p>

She coated her request with a smile, Tohru had met that kind of smile countless times before. Revenge is something humans have in their nature, they are born with that, and if something causes this nature to awaken, they can live only for that. He knew very well that her smile wasn't a smile at all, she would rather scream and break everyone on smile; but she couldn't. He just snorted, even working under a god didn't change his kind of business. People like her were always his clients; how ironic and how pitiful.

"I'll need a name," he said taking out his notepad.  
>"Shimizu Kazuyoshi," she said laughing nervously. "His father is a politician."<br>"That makes things easier," he said standing up. "Three days."  
>"Three days?"<br>"You'll have your revenge in three days."  
>"You promise?" she asked full of hope.<br>"No. That's not a promise. It's your payment, right? Trifle things like promises are not my style, but I like to return the favors... Too bad your omiai wasn't very pleasant. I wish you luck next time..."  
>"Fujita... You know, I study law. I hope that one day I will be able to help girls that have experienced that same thing as me..." she said as he was about to leave the room.<br>"Good for you, but it doesn't really concern me."  
>"I guess you are usually a cold person," she chuckled and then feel sillent for a moment. "Hey...Is he... Is he okay?"<br>"Who?" Tohru asked.  
>"Keisuke..."<br>"Well, he is an idol now. I doubt that he had forgotten what you did to him though. _I_ wouldn't," he said and he chuckled again.  
>"You are too honest after all... It hurts a bit..."<br>"I like to play the bad guy. So, goodbye."  
>"Thank you..."<p>

He didn't respond to that, even though he felt the urge to. The girl was nothing like she was when she entered the room. As her old memories returned, the pain she had gone through was outlined on her face. Her features had become weary, whereas she was smiling. Tohru left the room without another word; he finally had the information he wanted. However he didn't felt satisfied or pleased to the least. He had won the battle as he had expected, but his opponent suffered in a way he wasn't proud of.

"Oh! He is back!" Dionysus' loud voice announced his return.  
>"So, how did it go?" Nobu asked.<br>"Good," he responded in one word.

The others looked at each other confused; if everything had gone as planned, then the young informant should have already started his winning speech. Instead, Tohru was already focused on his i-phone, he had already typed the surname of the man Aihara had mention and he was already looking at the many results the search engine provided him. His eyes opened wide, not from fear but from surprise and suddenly he let a loud laugh, taking off his fake glasses.

For one more time people hadn't stop to amaze him, when they were moving in the shadows they could be cruel and ruthless but when they were in the light they could even play the messiah. A smile was formed wide on his face and he snickered. That was going to be fun, that was going to be so much fun. It seemed that his client had put her aims high.

"Tohru, what ha-" Dionysus was ready to ask for the details.  
>"Dionysus, take the kids and leave us," Hermes commanded.<br>"Okay," Dionysus seeing his brother like that didn't protested at all.

"Hermes... That's going to be fun..." he said laughing. "You eavesdropped again, right?"  
>"Tohru..." Hermes didn't smile, nor he seemed enthusiastic about that.<br>"I know. I better focus on my mission, right? That's not my business, right? But Hermes, don't you want to see what happens when a mask breaks and falls? I can guarantee that it's fun," he said eagerly.  
>"What a fool. I've watched that countless times and though I have to admit that it never fails to amaze me, I'm still not sure about that. You have a time limit, remember? Or you started to sympathize with her? As expected, you are too soft of a person. You fail me somehow," Hermes sighed.<br>"Hey, Hermes... My father pushed his debts on someone... That someone commuted suicide two months later... My father is behind bars right now. Do you know who sent him there?" he asked with a voice showing no emotion, typing on his i-phone.  
>"If I had to guess, I'd say... Oh! Maybe it's that Shimizu person! Plot twist! But I know the answer already, so your question is not exciting at all..."<br>"That's right... Unlike my father, I like to pay off my debts... I gave her an offer, I'm going to compensate her for the information she gave me and that's all. Next comes Kei..."  
>"Well, it's your call," Hermes shrugged.<br>"Then, we have no time to loose... I'm going first," he said walking ahead.

The Greek god folded his arms and smiled; his unlawful apprentice was earnest in a rather sadistic level. In order to satisfy his own beliefs and ideals he wouldn't hesitate to sacrifice his own blood and send him behind bars. Between the list of candidates he had, Hermes had chosen carefully; this kind of apprentice suited him the most. He hadn't regret the criteria he had set.

"Eccentric persons are so much fun!" he snickered. "That reminds me, I haven't pulled Hades' leg for a while now..."  
>"I'm sure Hades' wouldn't be pleased to hear that. I bet he doesn't miss you at all," someone said behind him.<br>"Oh, crap..." he mumbled it.  
>"It's been a while Hermes."<br>"That's true. Even for a man, you are too effeminate Aphrodite," Hermes responded and turned to face the person behind him. "I'd like to say that I'm glad to see you after such a long time, but I take that you are here to ruin my fun, so I'm not."  
>"That's so like you, Hermes."<p>

Aphrodite run her fingers through a ringlet of her hair; sign of her sense of superiority. Her presence there meant trouble and Hermes was well aware of that; good thing Dionysus wasn't there too he'd probably make the tension go higher. The goddess of beauty made a few steps forward, confidently as always. Her confidence, was emerging from her unrivaled beauty, her pampered upbringing and yet her elegant figure which was always standing firmly no matter the situation. She was conceited and spoiled, but she always knew what she wanted and moreover she always knew what _the others_ wanted; that was the key to her road to success.

"Your apprentice definitely suits you," she said, she finally stopped bεside him. "He is nothing like you, but I can see some similar traits."  
>"You always had an eye for interesting men, oh and Ares too, so no wonder."<br>"I see that your sense of humor is still the same," she said after a small pause.  
>"Why thank you."<br>"That wasn't a compliment."  
>"Oh well," he shrugged.<br>"I'd like to say that you are going against the rules, but it seems that you even tricked Athena. When it comes to your personal entertainment, you have no dignity," she said folding her arms behind her back.  
>"Well, it's not cute when you are doing that gesture in a man's body but-"<br>"Don't try to change the subject Hermes!"  
>"Well, what can I say. Athena was naïve herself."<br>"What did I even see in you, I wonder," Aphrodite sighed. "But since it came to this... Hermes, give up and come to my side..."  
>"Was that a threat?" Hermes laughed.<br>"Maybe..."  
>"I will humbly decline anyway."<br>"That's a pity... You pried into things more than you should have. Kei is not pleased with that..."  
>"Oh, I guess the poor boy has a grudge against humanity now. How tragic."<br>"Keep your irony to your self!" Aphrodite scowled. "You can be such and ass... urgh... whatever. Since you are not willing to negotiate and I'm not willing to break the rules, let's see who is going to overrule who in a legal way."  
>"What do you mean?"<br>"Kei is after your apprentice right now. I hope that you haven't grow very fond of him, since you have such tendencies when it comes to humans... Till next time..."

She disappeared letting behind her a small amount of sakura petals. Hermes smiled at that and pointed out his tongue; he wasn't the only god who had such tendencies as the one Aphrodite had described.

"Sounds fun... Good luck, my apprentice..."

* * *

><p><strong>Beta by<strong> Fallen Angel Itachi


	9. Call me a trickster

"So, what are you going to do know?"

The young, black haired man frowned at Hermes' question. He had already explained his next moves but clearly Hermes wasn't paying any attention. Tohru was sure that dealing with Hermes to the end of that competition would be enough to pay amends for all the sins he'd committed in his past lives. Yes, he had started to believe in reincarnation, because only his bad karma could explain his awful luck. And speaking of which. the god of luck was more inattentive than usual; that was something new.

"But Tohru, that's a dangerous plan," Dionysus bemoaned. "Can't you come up with something else?"

'Don't play naïve and caring with me, you devious god. I bet you want me killed.'

"I'm not sure about this plan either," Nobu agreed. "I mean, how can you be sure that it will work?"  
>"Let him get himself killed. We'll get his money when they finish him off," Nagi commented.<br>"How naïve," Tohru snorted. "Of course you won't. All the money I'll leave behind will go to my majestic funeral. It's all in the papers!"

'This guy is sick,' everyone thought in unison.

"Anyway. That's my problem, isn't it? Since you are not willing to cooperate, I will not include you in my plans," Tohru said folding his hands. "It seems that I'm the only venturesome person here and I can manage on my own."  
>"Risky you mean," Nagi corrected. "Why would we want to cooperate under these conditions? You won't even pay enough. It's<em> your<em> problem anyway."  
>"Hey, Nagi, that's too..." Nobu laughed nervously.<br>"Of course I won't pay you more! I'm the one risking his life!"  
>"Go die, stingy bastard," Nagi retorted coldly.<br>"What? You-"  
>"Calm down, Tohru," Dionysus held him back. "She is a girl!"<br>"No, she's a demon!"  
>"Like you are the one to talk," Nagi said calmly.<br>"Nagi, don't be so rude," Nοbu scolded her.

It was a fact that the young apprentice didn't get along with others easily, so his reaction was not surprising, but Nagi's remarks were like oil in fire. And as the intense conversation was going on, Dionysus noticed that something was missing. Hermes hadn't spoke even once, missing all the chances to pick on Tohru. The god of wine blinked and looked at his brother. The horror! His brother had a serious face and was checking around the area. Unconsciously, Dionysus let go of Tohru, who was too distracted to notice Dionysus uneasiness, and walked up to his brother.

"Hermes, what's going on?"  
>"Nothing for you to worry about. Look. I want you to follow Tohru and make sure his plan succeeds."<br>"What? You want me to play the role of the woman as he asked me to?" Dionysus asked surprised.  
>"No you fool, don't get caught up in this moron's naivety and way of thinking. His pride will have him killed one day," Hermes replied.<br>""Hermes..."  
>"You are going to play the role of the guy who will help him to enter their clique. Make sure they will accept him."<br>"Hey... Should I get rid of the guy completely?" Dionysus asked scratching his cheek. "I bet he is a scum, so he won't be missed."  
>"That's fine by me. But I don't think <em>he'<em>ll be fine with it if he finds out." Hermes added, nodding curtly to Tohru.  
>"Hey, little Tohru is funny when he snaps, but I don't want to get on his bad side. I guess threatening the guy will be enough," Dionysus concluded sighing.<br>"What's with that? Don't be so soft on him..."  
>"Hmmm?" Dionysus arched an eyebrow.<br>"I trust you with that, so make sure nothing goes wrong."  
>"Hermes... are you sure nothing is wrong?"<br>"No, there_ is_ something wrong, but it's nothing for _you_ to worry about. Help him with his plan. I will just cover his back for now."  
>"So it's about Tohru, isn't it? Who is-?"<br>"Dionysus, no more questions," Hermes glared at him.

The younger brother backed off. That was scary awfully, Hermes' glare was always hunting his childhood memories and he had a lot of memories with Hermes in them. His favorite older brother was also definitely the scariest of all. Even Apollo could not compare to him, since he was easy to placate.

"Euh? Where is Tohru?" Hermes asked.  
>"Ah... He walked towards the forest. He was really pissed off," Nobu said blinking.<br>"Don't worry. I bet he went to pee."  
>"Nagi!"<br>"What?" Hermes looked nervous.  
>"You shouldn't take your eyes away from him even for a second, Hermes. I warned you, didn't I?" a disembodied voice echoed.<p>

Everyone except for Hermes looked around confused. Hermes clapped and let out a snicker. His attitude pissed off the goddess of beauty who appeared in front of him with her hands folded and a stern look on her face. That kind of expression didn't fit Aphrodite at all, but her exceptional beauty was still there for everyone to admire. Both Dionysus and Nobu let out an astonished cry. Nagi's bubblegum popped.

"Aphrodite!" Dionysus literally jumped on her. "It's been so long."

As expected, she wasn't able to withstand his weight and they fell down under Hermes' unimpressed gaze. While Dionysus was still expressing his enthusiasm about their meeting, she stood up tidying up her clothes and brushing of the dust. The hearty god had ruined her dramatic entrance.

"Hoah, it's a beauty! An extreme beauty!" Nobu said thrilled and Nagi simply nodded in agreement.  
>"Don't dare to interfere," Aphrodite called out to Hermes who had found the chance to walk away.<br>"Aphrodite! It's Aphrodite!" Dionysus said again brushing his cheek against her.  
>"You'll never stop this bad habit of yours, will you?" she sighed referring to Dionysus' way to greet people. "There-there, I'm happy to see you too," she sighed patting his head. "Even though you teamed up with this trickster."<br>"What can I say? I'm much more charming than you," Hermes shrugged with a cocky smile.  
>"You never change either, do you?" Aphrodite asked. "The point is that my apprentice is after yours right now. I wonder though if yours is clever enough to get away."<br>"He isn't." Hermes replied coldly. "He is a complete idiot who won't even have the time to panic because he will be too busy mourning over his bad luck."  
>"Excuse me?" Aphrodite looked confused.<br>"He does run fast however, since he is a coward."  
>"Little Tohru is in danger? Why?" Dionysus asked blinking.<br>"Dionysus, read the situation already," they said simultaneously.

They way Hermes portrayed Tohru wasn't that far from reality. His apprentice was indeed a coward in many cases. Nevertheless, monies, investments and other related with profit could easily make him forget his cowardly side and motivate him enough to become a bit reckless. And the said coward was trying to find his peace of mind resorting to the serenity of the forest. He had to clear his thoughts; the plan he was about to put in action wouldn't be easy.

_*"A girl barefooted brings brings, and tumbles..." _

"Who is there?" Tohru stood up immediately.

He wasn't able to recognize that voice. That could only mean trouble. The verse echoed through the woods, making his situation have an even creepier feeling. A rustle, a shadow and then nothing again. Tohru looked around him making a few steps backwards. The stranger was definitely a man, he could tell from his figure, but that was the only thing he knew.

"_Down the pavement, green-fresh melons, and says there is news to-day-the King was shot at, touched in the liver wing..."_

With that, a bullet passed by very closely to his head. He could hear it piercing the air, making a sharp noise. Who said that in times like that the only thing you can see is your whole life passing in front of your eyes? Bullshit. The only thought he had in his mind was that he was too young to die and the only thing he could see was the area around him. He wanted to run but his legs were trembling so much that he ended up kneeling on the ground instead.

"_Goes with his Bourbon arm in a sling: She hopes they have not caught the felons. Italy... my... Italy..."_

A young man had appeared from within the shadows and was aiming right at his temple. Who cares about his past life at times like these? Tohru just wanted to scream but no sound managed to come out even though his mouth was hanging. It wasn't clear, because the light was very dim and he couldn't see the face of the stranger very well, but the man seemed to be determined. Did they get whiff of him already? No, sure he had many after him, but that wasn't possible.

'Calm down, me...'

"How poetic for a killer," he finally said, forcing a smile.  
>"Well, I thought that making it dramatic would suit the situation better."<br>"Heeeh. How merciful. Giving your victim a dramatic scene, you are one hell of a killer."  
>"Heeh? And you are way too talkative for someone who is about to die. You should have started begging me to spare you by now."<br>"I rather not," Tohru replied. "Since nothing guarantees me that you will spare me in the end, I rather have a dramatic ending with dignity instead of a pathetic one."  
>"You are a funny man," he said titling his head. "Dignity? Aren't you just a prideful bastard? Pride is a sin you know."<br>"What's your problem?" Tohru snapped. "I have to choose the way I die at least! Blabbing about sins and stuff at a moment like this... What are you? A clergyman?"  
>"Euh?" the man looked a bit surprised.<br>"If you are going to do it, just do it already. Jeez... Why do I have such a bad luck. Even my killer is a pain in the ass... such a pain in the ass... Every and each one of you is such a pain in the ass. Just get over it already..."  
>"Are you ser-"<br>"Ah! Mr. Policeman! How lucky!"  
>"Euh?"<p>

The man turned himself towards the direction Tohru was looking surprised. That was his chance: Tohru riffled a rock at his gun and it soon fell on the ground; for a potential murderer he sure had a weak grip. Without loosing time, he jumped on him, using his weight to throw him on the ground, snatching the gun.

"Idiot!" he said with a rather sadistic smile. "There is no way I'd be_ that_ lucky. A policeman here in the woods? How did you fall for that?"  
>"Well..."<p>

Tohru let out a scream; no matter how cocky he could get, he was never good in physical fights. A beautifully executed kick had landed between his legs and it was spot-on. The pain he experienced was horrible, it could only compare to Hermes' way of teleportation and made him recoil on the ground.

"That doesn't mean I'll let you have it your way," he said standing up.

They were like wolves fighting for a piece of meat. Their eyes were searching for the gun, which had fell from Tohru's hands when he fell back in pain. The fastest, the strongest wins.

He was tired of the whole situation. He wanted to call for help, but one wrong move and a shiny bullet would probably keep company to his brains. The edgy young man wasn't scared anymore, he was pissed off. Very pissed off. But he wasn't fast enough to reach the gun first.

"Aphrodite was right. Hermes' apprentice ought to be a trickster himself," the man said pointing the gun at him.  
>"Don't compare me to this guy!" he barked. "Euh? Aphrodite? Then... Could it be. You are Ito Keitaro, right? Right?"<p>

A pause followed...

"It's been a long time since someone called me by that name, but yeah," he said caressing the nape of his neck. "So you already know my real name. You should keep your nose out of my business. Now I have to do this..."  
>"Hold on. Why would you have to go that far? What about the rules? Shouldn't you try to win the game fair and square?"<br>"The game? Nah... This is not about the game. You know too much about me, that's the problem. If you slip something to the public media, my new life would be ruined you know," he said sighing. "I'm not-"  
>"You don't want to go through that for a second time, right?" Tohru asked.<br>"Pretty much. That's why I have to shut you up one way or another," he simply answered.  
>"Are you an idiot?" Tohru asked standing up. "I'm not going to do something like that."<p>

The man laughed really hard. Of course his reaction didn't surprise the black-haired young man to the least. Actually he expected a worse one. When the man finally stopped laughing he looked at him straight in his eyes. Convincing him with his words was the only option he had.

"Do you think I'm going to believe what you just said?"  
>"Don't make me laugh. Why should I expect someone who was betrayed by the girl he loved to believe a stranger?" Tohru asked and silence prevailed for a couple of minutes.<p>

The gun trembled in the man's hands. He could tell that he had enraged him. It was pretty clear that he didn't want to hear anything about his past even without saying it. But he didn't shoot and that was a good sign.

"I know about your circumstance. The one who told me the whole story was the same girl that betrayed you years ago."  
>"Shut up..." he mumbled.<br>"She said that she had regretted everything. In my opinion it's too late for that though."  
>"Shut up..."<br>"Hey... Let me guess. Next time I talk to you about it, you are going to shoot me telling me that I don't know anything about you so I have no right to talk, miss because you are not focused, make a dramatic speech and then we'll be like we are actors in some teenage drama, right?"  
>"Huh?" Kei looked confused.<br>"Look. I won't ask you to believe me, but I have no reason to make anything public. Why, you ask? Because I'll make no profit even if I _do_ make everything public. You are clear and I'm sure Aphrodite would do anything to back you up. So let me offer you a deal instead. I take revenge on your accord from the guy who started everything and messed up your life and you spare my life right now. Sounds fair, right?"

Acting was something very useful to someone who knew that his words were the only strong weapon he had, maybe it was one of the few skills he had which were actually helpful in his work. Even though he was putting on a cool act, Tohru was wishing for all his might Kei would agree. The black shotgun in the young man's hands was scaring him, his eyes were focused on it while he was talking.

"Even I can't touch this man no matter how famous I am right now. There is no way you will be able to," he said calmly.  
>"You really are a good guy you know. Taking up a signing career in order to face a guy like him is the worse idea you could have," Tohru snorted.<br>"That what are you going to do ?"  
>"You just don't get it. Give me 4 days. If the man is not behind bars in 4 days, you can kill me."<br>"Are you crazy? Four days?" the man laughed. "There is no way-"  
>"Three days then."<br>"Three days? That's ridi..." the man stopped his own words and lowered his gun end extended his right hand. "Can you really do that?"  
>"I can do it," he said confidently and took the hand Kei offered him.<br>"Three days then. Even though it's impossible. If you fail I'll make sure you'll go through hell. Not only had you dared to snoop into my business but you also dared to mess up her life as well."  
>"Her? Do you mean Aihara?" Tohru laughed.<br>"What's so funny?" Kai asked titling his head.  
>"Don't tell me that you forgave the girl completely. Well, it's not like I care about that," he noted taking a few steps. "She asked if you are ok, you see. I think that you are the only one who can give a certain answer. I'm going back..."<br>"Don't get me wrong," he said. "I haven't forgiven her completely. But I don't hate her... If it were in her shoes, maybe I'd have done the same. So, I don't hate her."

The tone of his voice was serious and honest. Tohru looked at him over his shoulder; Kei was smiling. For some reason the young man's words made him feel queasy. He had a hard time with lenient people like him. No matter what he said, it was obvious that he had already forgiven her a long time ago. Tohru pointed out his tongue disgusted.

"I'm going back..." he finally announced. "Stay here and play the forgiving victim all by yourself."  
>"Heeh... Such an annoying person you are. You were supposed to be amazed," the young man said following him.<br>"Like hell I'd do that. Why are you following me anyway?"  
>"Well. My master is probably giving a hard time to yours right know. And I was supposed to meet her there anyway..."<p>

That resulted to a long conversation about how Hermes, no, the flying happy-go-lucky idiot was not his master but just an annoying person he had to deal with until he pays his debt. Just for the record, the same happy-go-lucky idiot found Aphrodite's priceless reaction to the view of them returning together very amusing.

The goddess of beauty did not react to her apprentice's words for more that five minutes. She felt humiliated; everything she had said about her apprentice until then and how he was going to teach Hermes' apprentice a lesson proved to be just empty words.

"We just made a deal. It's nothing to worry about, old lady..." Tohru reassured her.  
>"Oh, no..." Dionysus cried.<p>

Distracted by Dionysus reaction Tohru wasn't able to see what had hit him. The next moment he had hit the ground hard and his whole body was aching. Aphrodite was stepping on his belly with his right leg while Kei was leaning over him. Still confused, he tried to stand up again but Aphrodite pushed him again on the ground.

"That's a forbidden word, man," Kei informed him.

"Such a discourteous person. You are indeed Hermes' apprentice. They say that birds of the same feather flock together... Do you think you will insult the goddess of beauty like that and you will get away unpunished?"  
>"What goddess of beauty? Don't give me that. With enough money I can get the same face as yours..." Tohru snorted.<br>"You insolent-"  
>"It's okay Aphrodite," Dionysus said holding her back. "He is still a brat, he doesn't know the meaning of true beauty yet. An angry woman is never beautiful, right? So, calm down."<br>"Very well... Just this once, I will overlook it."

Saved by Dionysus interference, Tohru in his most upset mode was free to stand up again. He had come to a very natural conclusion; Greek gods were definitely obnoxious, arrogant and extremely self-conscious. Furthermore they didn't bring luck and happiness to those around them, but exactly the opposite. His life had become a mess since he met Hermes and there were no signs of improvement.

"Well, I guess we'll take our leave now," Kei h**e**ld out his hand. "We'll meet in three days."  
>"A deal is a deal, you don't have to remind me," Tohru grumbled standing up on his own.<br>"Heeh... Just like a kid. Pride is a sin you know."  
>"Just leave already."<br>"Until then..." Kei saluted.  
>"Kei, next time don't make random deals before you inform me about them," Aphrodite complained placing a hand on his shoulder. "I won't allow that again."<br>"Well, it was an interesting deal." Kei shrugged.

And with that they disappeared leaving the crew behind them.

Dionysus was sniffing, waving a white handkerchief at them while saying to Aphrodite how much he'd miss her; it was questionable if she was able to hear that or not though. Hermes on the other hand had stayed quiet, but the smile on his face was more arrogant than ever before. Nobu and Nagi, who were very confused by the whole situation looked at each other and shrugged.

"Enough fooling around. Let's proceed with the plan," Tohru sighed; he hadn't manage to relax in the end.  
>"Oh, little Tohru pretends to be the boss now," Hermes commented.<br>"Look. I was about to get killed back there and I ended up making a deal with a lunatic, so don't go bitching about me now, ok?"  
>"I was just surprised. You promised to take revenge on his accord. I bet there were others ways too. Aren't you too soft?"<br>"Idiot..." an evil smile appeared on Tohru's face. "I didn't even mention that I had made the same deal with Aihara to him. So I got away using something I was about to do anyway. Moreover, I bet that he entered the game wishing for revenge, so if I manage to take revenge for him I'm 75% sure that he will loose his motivation to participate. Which means that I won't have to come up with a plan to get rid of him. So naïve, this guy is so naïve. In the end it's all about brains, I win. Kyahahaha..."  
>"Hermes... Tohru is kind of scary today..." Dionysus said pulling his brothers shirt.<br>"Really? That's typical of him," Nobu put in.  
>"Really?"<br>"Why in Hades name are you so surprised about that Dionysus?"  
>"Don't mention Hades while he is making this kind of face," Dionysus said pointing at Tohru. "You are making the situation worse."<br>"You are such a wuss..."

"So, about that plan..." Tohru interrupted them.

Indeed, the plan was not very complicated. Tohru's orders were also clear and easy to accomplice, but if something were to go wrong, things could get very dangerous. The first step was to approach a guy of Shimizu's crew, pay him and make him introduce Tohru to him; that task was up to Nobu. He had to find one, contact him and make the deal. That was easy for him, Nobu managed to ensure the cooperation of one almost immediately. Nagi were to prepare a mega mini spy, wireless camera which would be adjusted on Tohru's scarf. Tohru would pretend to be one of the crew while trying to find the opportunity to film their actions on camera. If they'd be able to succeed, Shimizu would be able to witness a great surprise the young informant had planned for him.

"What about me?" Hermes asked pointing to himself while Tohru was changing his clothes.  
>"Make me a favor and stay out of this," Tohru replied not even looking at him.<br>"How cold. The god of trickery won't smile upon you if you keep up with this attitude."  
>"The god of trickery <em>laughs at me<em> however and it's more than enough."  
>"Fair enough."<br>"Where is the other one by the way?"  
>"The other one? Who?" Hermes asked blinking.<br>"Dionysus."  
>"Oh," he vocalized placing a finger on his lips. "I think he said he'd busy today."<br>"The camera is ready," Nagi announced.  
>"I'm still not sure about this plan. Maybe we should cancel everything," Nobu insisted.<br>"You just have to drive me there, so stop complaining."  
>"That leaves the both of us alone," Hermes smiled to Nagi. "I'll be in your care."<br>"Die perverted playboy," she smiled back.  
>"Euh?"<br>"Serves you right," Tohru mumbled entering Nobu's car.  
>"That was creepy..." Hermes gulped.<br>"Don't try anything funny, ok? Nagi, if he makes any suspicious moves text me."

A couple of hours later they were waiting resting their backs on the car in an underground parking lot. Such a typical meeting place for a meeting like that. Both of them had considered that fact strange. The guy had probably watched too many movies. On top of that, he was late. Tohru was checking his watch again and again.

"Sorry I'm late."

He had finally showed up. Dressed in buggy clothes and wearing sunglasses, he was falling right into the stereotypes. Tohru sighed and greeted him trying not to show his impatience and anger.

"This is the guy I talked to you about. His name is Kujo Ryuhei," Nobu introduced him.  
>"Nice to meet you man, I'm Masao," he greeted. "So, you want to enter master Shimizu's group."<br>"Huh," Tohru nodded smiling arrogantly. "I trust you will make that easy for me."  
>"That's why I'm here, man. Naughty guys like you should always be welcomed."<br>"I'm glad to hear that," Tohru grinned titling his head. "I might get a bit too naughty, but I'll be in your care. I hope you'll live up to my expectations."  
>"Oh... I see... well, welcome," the guy said nervously. "Follow me."<p>

That was when Tohru parted with Nobu. As for Masao he was very talkative and he was asking way too many questions, so many that Tohru had a hard time to keep up with his act. After taking a stroll around a neighborhood of ill fame, they entered into a worn-down apartment building. The smell there was horrid, Tohru could barely stand it. Trying to ignore the men around them, who were giving them curious looks, he focused his gaze on Masao's back.

"Here we are," said Masao and opened the door of Shimizu's office. "Chief!" he called.  
>"Hah?" Shimizu responded, not very politely.<p>

Shimizu was sitting on his desk, chatting with a few creeps of his gang. Rough manners, sinister smiles; one could tell from their appearance they were dangerous people. But then again, appearance, behaviors and such could be misleading. But this wasn't the case there.

"What is it now Masao? I'm in the middle of a conversation, can't you see?"  
>"But, Chief, I brought the newbie I told you about."<br>"A newbie?" Shimizu asked approaching them. "What's your name?"  
>"Kujo Ryuhei," Tohru replied as Shimizu was checking him out.<br>"Ryuhei, euh?" he said grabbing Tohru's chin. "Well, you are an average, I could use you as a bait. These guys are not very useful when it comes to this," he said pointing at them.  
>"How cruel, Chief," they laughed.<br>"You do need some polishing though," he continued.  
>"As long as I get my share, you can do whatever you want with me," Tohru smirked.<br>"Hooh? Brave and promising words," Shimizu said excited. "Let's see how brave you are then. Koji... bring her."  
>"Yes, sir."<p>

A man stood up and entered on of the apartment's room, coming back dragging a girl brutally. Tohru didn't flinch at that view, he had expected to see something like that, so he glanced at her with apathy. It was Shimizu's turn to smirk as he grabbed the girl from her hair.

"See this as my welcoming gi-"  
>"You are such a generous man, Chief!" Tohru interrupted him looking excited to an exaggerated extend.<br>"Euh?" Shimizu was surprised.  
>"Where can I do her?" he asked reaching to his pocket. "It's been a while since I had my private fun with a girl," he continued taking out a jackknife.<br>"Euh? You mean... Well," he said bulging his eyes. "You... You may go there..." he said pointing at a random room.  
>"Can I have the restroom instead?" Tohru asked licking the girl's left ear. "Such a nice taste..."<br>"Sure," Shimizu gulped.  
>"That's Chief for you, you are so kind to me while I'm a new face here."<br>"No, please," the girl begged Shimizu. "Please, let me go."  
>"We are going to have so much fun," Tohru said dragging her to the restroom while the poor girl was screaming, trying to free herself.<p>

At least he had avoided the rooms. There was a high probability they had set up hidden cameras there. Shimizu's group was watching shuddering. As expected, they were nothing but a gang of bandits who were acting all high and mighty only when they had someone weaker in front of them. Pushing the girl into the restroom, Tohru slammed the door closed behind him and turned to her. The girl was desperately trying to free herself from his grip, crying and begging.

While checking if someone had followed him, the young apprentice ripped random areas of her clothes apart whispering that he won't hurt her. However that wasn't enough to calm the girl down, the opposite, she screamed even more and scratched his face making him bleed.

"You..." he hissed.

'No, calm down, Tohru,' he tried to cool down his anger. 'It's normal, her reaction is normal. You just have to explain everything with the right words.'

"Look," he whispered again. "I know you are afraid and that's normal, just cooperate with me and you won't get any harm."

Thought those were not exactly the right words... The girl broke into tears and her sobbing became even louder. Confused, Tohru sighed deeply, and hit the wall with his fists three times.

"Yeah, keep screaming like that, I like it," he said with an embarrassed face.

It was the girl's turn to look at him confuse as Tohru was keeping up with his acting. However, she didn't stop crying, she looked at him shocked and moved further back. Probably, unable to understand what the man in front of her was thinking, she concluded that she had to do with a freak who wanted to torment her that way.

"I won't do anything. Keep screaming though," he whispered.  
>"Are you with the cops?" she gulped.<br>"No way," Tohru snorted. "Oh, that doesn't mean that I will harm you though. Continue with the act if you want to save your ass. Oh, by the way, please scratch random parts of my body," he said taking of his shirt.  
>"Freak," she sobbed, rolling her eyes.<br>"It's part of the act, ok? Just do it. It's not like it's pleasant for me too," he said grabbing her hand. "I need to have pro-"  
>"Don't touch me!" she said pushing him away.<p>

At least, while she was putting on a fight, she scratched him like she was supposed to. Minutes later, Tohru still hadn't manage to explain the situation ...but he didn't care. The girl was exhausted, he was full of scratches which were hurting as hell and it was about time to stop the act. There was no point to apologize, so he grabbed the girl from her hair again telling her that it was time to go back to the others again. She was too surprised by the sudden declaration to struggle against him.

"I'm back, Chief," he announced throwing the girl on the floor. "I had a great time!"

He was bleeding in random parts, the scratches the girl caused were rather deep. He would scream and complain if he could, yet he managed to force a big, ostensibly excited, smile. The guys surrounding Shimizu responded with nervous smile, the most of them could not take their eyes away from Tohru's blood. The view, to them, was creepy. The girl could not take her eyes away from Tohru, she was in shock and her whole body had gone numb. They didn't want to imagine what she had experienced.

"Ta-Take the girl..." Shimizu said.  
>"Euh? Are you going to use her a second time?" Tohru asked looking disappointed. "How boring."<br>"Ah, no..." Shimizu said surprised. "Of course not, we'll just dispose her."  
>"Oh! I see! I was disappointed for a moment. I shouldn't have doubted you," he said smiling.<br>"Of-Of course," he gulped. "I'm the Chief here, what do you take me for?"

'That's right, become more and more nervous. Feel the need to brag,' Tohru was trying to hide a smirk.

"Take the girl and leave us!" he ordered nervously.  
>"But, Chief-"<br>"Leave us!"

The guys nodded and left the room forcing the girl to stand up and follow them.

"So, Ryuhei was it?" Shimizu asked. "I didn't expect-"  
>"Oh, are you about to praise me, Chief?" Tohru interrupted him. "There is no need too. I have a long way until I catch up to you."<br>"Th-That's true."  
>"Chief, is it true that you are the son of Shimizu the politician? How daring! You set up this kind of business while your father is always under the spotlight."<br>"Yeah, that's right," Shimizu smirked. "I have nothing to be afraid of as long as my father covers for me."  
>"Hoh! As expected from Chief. You are not afraid that your father will betray you to the least!"<br>"He doesn't have any other choice. I'm his only son and he'd be in big trouble if the media were to find anything about this. I'm doing this for years and I have disposed everyone who tried to oppose me ever since my high school days."  
>"Come on, Chief. I think you are exaggerating. Ever since high school?" Tohru laughed.<br>"Are you doubting me?" he asked annoyed. "I'm a man who didn't hesitate to charge another man with rape to save his ass. This business brings me a lot of money, there is no way I'd stop for something like that."  
>"Chief, you definitely think big," Tohru said cupping his chin. "I was only thinking of having fun when I came here."<br>"That's why guys like you never make it big," Shimizu snorted.  
>"Well, I'll have my share of fun and you'll make money, so I think we both benefit each other," Tohru scratched the nape of his neck.<br>"You are a strange man, but I like you," he said filling his glass with wine. "Welcome, pal."  
>"What about the cops, Chief?"<br>"The cops?" he laughed. "They have no evidence against me, so they can not approach this place. They won't find any Adult Videos here either, there are in a place they could never imagine."

His laugh became even louder, Shimizu was indeed thirsting for attention, he was a man who could easily brag for himself when he had the chance. Tohru clapped and continued with his flattering and questions, always filling Shimizu's glass with more wine.

"Well, Chief, I have to go now, it's pretty late," he said standing up.  
>"Come on, Ryuhei,stay a bit more," he whined.<br>"I'm not as cool as you boss," he replied. "I have to rest, tomorrow will be my first day, right? I have to replenish my energy and I'd make the other guys jealous if I were to spend the night here while I'm only a newbie, right?"  
>"You have a point. Cheers then!" he said raising his glass.<br>"Goodnight, Chief," he said exiting the room.

Outside, Shimizu's gang had occupied every sofa and chair in the room. They were everywhere. The floor, the stairs... And every each one of them was glaring at him trying to intimidate him. Tohru simply smirked and continued his way out.

"Hey, newbie," one of them called. "Don't act all high and mighty just because Chief took a liking to you. You are still not accepted the rest of us."  
>"Well, since Chief seems to like me, you better not talk to me like that," Tohru smiled. "Now, if you excuse me..."<p>

He left the building as quickly as he could and took a big breath; even though he wanted to it wasn't time for him to relax. Nobu was waiting for him in his van around the corner. He ran there making sure that nobody was following him.

"What happened?" Nobu asked.  
>"Nothing, everything went just as planned," he responded. "I was lucky enough. Let's go."<br>"Okay. The rests are waiting in my hotel room."  
>"Just go already!"<br>"Ok, ok, relax!"

And that's what he did, he fell asleep in the middle of the ride and when he opened his eyes again, he was laying on a soft bed.

"Man, what's with those scratches?" Hermes asked. "And I thought your face could not get any worse."

On second thought, maybe he should sleep a bit more. The next day would be a hard one...

*Is an excerpt of "Pippa Passes" by Robert Browning.


	10. Thanatos comes without notice

That day the weather was perfect. That made the old, ambitious politician rather happy. Gods seemed to be on his hide since his campaign was extremely successful. Ηe looked at his reflection with a confident look and his lips formed a pleased smile. His voters were waiting outside for his speech. As his dresser was applying the final touches, he was reading his paper one last time to revise the important points he had to mention. He was going to win the election, finally, he was sure about that.

"That's enough, leave me alone now," he ordered her.

The woman bowed lightly and left the room quickly.

Seconds later a knock on the door disturbed his peace. He raised an eyebrow and he turned his face towards the exit annoyed. For a moment he thought that it was his dresser again, she used to forget her things and come back to get them all the time, but he was surprised to see a young man with brown hair tied in a ponytail and a cap smiling humbly by the door. From his clothes he assumed immediately that he was one of his personnel. Of course he couldn't remember all of their names, and the truth was that he didn't feel like to either way.

"How can I help you, young man?" he asked as politely as he could.

As a politician he ought to treat them kindly no matter what for the appearances. That was the key to his success. A bright yet fake smile, some words of compassion and suddenly you were their personal hero, the messiah they were longing for.

The young man bowed slightly, taking off his hat at the same time.

"Pardon me, Mr. Shimizu. I'm in charge of Media Team. Excuse my rudeness for coming here without permission but I'm a huge fan of yours!" he said with enthusiasm.  
>"There is no need to apologize," the man said with a smile. "I'm pleased to meet young people like you. You are, after all, the future of our country."<p>

Overused words. He had repeated them countless time. Over and over like a robot. All of them were pleased to hear words like those. That man as well caressed the nape of his neck looking embarrassed. What future? Who was pleased? If he wasn't a potential voter he wouldn't pay any attention to his words.

"I want to congratulate you in advance. I'm sure that your speech today will leave your audience in awe," he emphasized his lasts words. "Gods are definitely watching over you!"  
>"Thank you for your kind words. I was a bit nervous but your words are giving me courage."<br>"Don't worry, sir! I'll make sure this day will become unforgettable to your voters," he said balling his fists with determination. "Oh, by the way, sir... I was a friend of your son in middle school!"  
>"My son?"<p>

His voice changed. He tried his best to hide his uneasiness.

Why did someone have to mention his failure of a son at a time like that? He felt his stress piling up before he realizes. More than anything, he wanted to avoid that discussion and relax before his speech.

"I doubt that he will remember me, but if you please, could you pass my greetings to him?"  
>"Of course, son," he smiled.<br>"My name is Kujo Ryuhei. Give him my best regards."  
>"I will."<br>"Now, excuse me. I don't want to waste your time anymore" the young man said and left after a bow.

Shimizu stood up caressing the temples of his head. Letting out a deep sigh, he filled his glass with water and took a few sips. Nothing was going to disturb him at that important moment. Not even the thought of his pathetic son. Maybe he should fire that man later. He was imprudent enough to bother him without permission and every man who had relations with his son could be proved dangerous for his career.

He fixed his necktie and forced his usual smile on before he leaves his room. Soon he was on a podium waving to his countless voters. Behind him a huge screen was displaying spots of his campaign. While he was giving a passionate talk, emphasizing his points with exaggerated gestures his group of voters seemed to be in ecstasy, he could see his future singed on their smiles.

'That's it. I can smell sweet victory,' he thought.

However, not long after, the passionate cheers were replaced by a relentless rumble. His voice was echoing clearer and clearer and it didn't take long enough for him to notice that everyone's eyes were glued on the TV screen instead of him. Confused and curious he turned to take a peek at whatever was drawing their attention...

What he saw though made him shake in fear.

"Someone, stop this footage!" he screamed loosing himself.

But it was too late. The volume started to rise and the voice of a young man echoed clearly around the area.

"_Chief, is it true that you are the son of Shimizu the politician? How daring! You set up this kind of business while your father is always under the spotlight."  
>"Yeah, that's right. I have nothing to be afraid of as long as my father covers for me."<em>

"No. Stop it! What kind of farce is this? This is not my son," he laughed pointing at the screen.

His laugh wasn't fake, neither a natural one, it was full of agony. His voice was trembling. He could already foreseen the disaster. His eyes were pleading those around him to do something while others were already off to find the culprit. As the rumble was changing into angry voices and swears he fell on the ground defeated. There was no stopping it.

Should he get angry? Should he try to cover everything as always? Should he seek revenge? He didn't know. Maybe he should try doing all of them. He was ready to stand up when two hands pushed him down again from behind. He felt someone leaning over him. A shudder ran down his spine.

So the cops were already there?

"_He has no other choice. I'm his only son and he'd be in big trouble if the media were to find anything about this. I'm doing this for years and I have disposed everyone who tried to oppose me ever since my highschool days."_

The voice of his son was echoing inside his ears.

How could he possibly cover that? Maybe he should say that everything was fake. That they had kidnapped and forced his son to do this. His opponents could be easily blamed for that. They had aired it one day before the elections after all. Yes, so that he wouldn't be able to do anything. They would buy that. There was a possibility they would believe that reasoning.

"Old man, don't avert your eyes from the screen," the man behind him whispered. "This is your son. _You_ made him like this. By casting him aside, by covering up for him whenever he tried to get your attention, but giving him this kind of freedom. You are the one who created this kind of person, this kind of demon. Because, you know, he still haunts the memory of many... way too many people. He is to be blamed as well, but you were the stepping stone of his crimes... so you share the same sins."  
>"No," he shook his head.<br>"You were his cover when he was destroying lives of innocent people, you can't deny that. Just for your career and peace. What a beautiful example of a father you are."  
>"No. I... It's his fault. He should..."<br>"He should act like a good boy. Of course he did! In front of the cameras at least. Don't forget to give him my regards, Mr. Shimizu."

"_The cops? They have no evidence against me, so they can not approach this place. They won't find any Adult Videos here either, there are in a place they could __ever__ imagine."_

Was his son's laugh so evil before? He wasn't ever sure if the man on the screen was his son anymore. That young man... Wasn't he the one he met before his speech? The sound of his footsteps were fading.

Shimizu titled his head defeated, following the figure. He was dressed in a black suit. Black hair,black eyes. He flashed a smile before he takes the corner. Wasn't that how they used to portray angel's of death in modern movies? Or he was an angel of death himself?

"Kujo Ryuuhei, eh?" he mumbled.

The young man bowed one last time before he turns the corner. An evil smirk appeared on his lips as he was bowing.

"I see... That's how it is. That smirk felt natural..." he turned his attention back to the TV screen. "I guess that's the shady side of our countries future."  
>"Mr. Shimizu. I'm sorry to say that you are under arrest for-"<br>"Huh. That's it. That's how it was supposed to be," he mumbled standing up. "I know," he said louder. "I won't resist. There is no point to."

One day later, the Media were still obsessing over the scandal. New evidence had come to light and more and more victims were giving their testimony. Tohru was doubting that every single one of them was a victim though, but they definitely had their reasons. Humans would do everything for a little bit of fame, the way didn't matter to them.

"The town is full of reports today," Nobu said turning off his cellphone. "We are lucky we left yesterday. I definitely need a day off."  
>"It's natural. It's Shimizu's hometown after all," Tohru said browsing the internet.<p>

From newsletters to random boards, Shimizu's case was a hot topic. But, it wouldn't take long before everyone forgets about it; a couple of weeks maybe. Only the ones directly involved would suffer for a bit more. Shimizu, father and son, were behind bars. The media would not bother with them again soon, at least not until their trial.

"I got a mail from Aphrodite this morning," Hermes said.  
>"Seriously now, a mail?" Tohru asked.<br>"Kei was pestering her. He wanted to transport him here to thank you. Of course Aphrodite wouldn't do something like that," Hermes said in a carefree tone and bit an apple.  
>"Aphrodite can be very cold and short-tempered some times but she is actually really cute," Dionysus defended her.<br>"She was pretty mad at you, Tohru. Her apprentice lost his motivation now. After cursing you in many ways, he said that you are an insolent brat and that you should watch out for her. How unlucky. You lost your chance with her."  
>"Not my kind of taste. You guys seem to be all over her though," Tohru said.<br>"A man, not interested in the goddess of beauty... That's something rare," Hermes laughed. "I don't know if I should call you different or blind. Oh, let me guess. It's not all about appearance and blahblahblah..."  
>"Not really. I do care about appearance, but she is still not my type. Plus, she seems to be a woman who spends a lot of money too" he concluded.<br>"Really now," the two gods sighed.  
>"Enough with that. I did follow your orders successfully. Kei seems to be out of your way for now, so I guess I should expect my bonus."<br>"That's no use. He cares about money more than anything," Nobu sighed.  
>"I know. Your bonus will be at your disposal tomorrow," Hermes assured him, throwing half of his apple into the basket.<br>"Hermes, don't waste human food," Dionysus scolded him looking over the disposed fruit. "Such a waste..."  
>"What now? Do you have any leads?" Tohru asked.<br>"That's your job, isn't it?" Hermes raised an eyebrow at him.  
>"Figures. Unhelpful as always. And you call your self a god," Tohru murmured.<br>"I always transport you from one place to another when you need it," he threw his hands in the air pretending to be bothered by his words. "Stop complaining."

Of course, Hermes' horrible way of transportation stroke again.

The night before, exhausted, he had found his way to the toilet crawling on the ground. According to Hermes' he was getting more used to it but to him it was as painful as always. Strangely enough, Nobu and Nagi, who were transported by Dionysus, seemed to be in one piece when they arrived. He had his suspicions from the start but now Tohru was getting more and more convinced that Hermes was doing that on purpose.

"He isn't as used to this as me," Dionysus had spoken up for him. "That's why he has trouble transporting you."

"Like hell he has! He just enjoys doing it!" Tohru mumbled glaring at the mischievous god. "I did see the smirk on his face."

"What about my van?" Nobu asked. "I forgot to ask yesterday, but it was rented you know. I don't want to get in trouble."  
>"Don't worry," Dionysus smiled pleased. "I contacted my son. He will take care of it and you-"<br>"Your son?" Tohru interrupted.  
>"Yes. He is such a good boy."<br>"As... which deity?"  
>"That old pervert got himself a woman when he settled here," Hermes informed while patting Dionysus chest with the back of his hand.<p>

Tohru made a grimace and looked from Hermes to Dionysus and then back to Hermes.

None of them seemed to be joking. The news were shocking to him. He had thought of many thing about gods since he met Hermes but that kind of possibility hadn't crossed his mind.

"You mean... with a mortal woman?" Tohru asked surprised.  
>"A mortal one to the core," Hermes said laying on the sofa.<br>"Then... his son is..." Nobu said.  
>"Probably hot," Nagi interrupted them.<br>"Nagi!" her brother looked at her surprised. "That was... It was..."  
>"My woman is said to be pretty hot, he took after her a lot," Dionysus laughed.<br>"A demigod..." Tohru gasped and stood up. "He is a demigod?" he repeated walking around in circles. "Is that legal?" he finally asked turning to Hermes.  
>"Legal, not legal, it happens since Zeus knows when," Hermes shrugged. "So none of us care anymore. There were several demigods throughout the centuries. Just because your knowledge stops in the mythological era doesn't mean that gods had not eloped with humans since then."<br>"Now that you mentioned it, he summoned me this morning," Dionysus looked troubled. "It's been a while since I last saw him so I bet he misses his father... Ok, I'm going to pay him a visit right now!" he decided.  
>"Hmmm... When are you going to come back?" Hermes asked nonchalantly.<br>"When I wonder... I hope soon enough," his little brother replied scratching his cheek. "Well then, see ya."  
>"I bet his son is just like him," Tohru commented.<br>"What about us?" Nobu asked.  
>"Oh, you can take Tohru's room if you like. Make yourselves at home."<br>"What?"  
>"Thanks, Tohru!" Nobu said.<br>"The bed seems nice. Big brother, you sleep on the floor."  
>"What? Nagi, that's not fair!"<br>"What? Why-" Tohru seemed confused.  
>"Come on, Tohru. This sofa is good enough for you. Here, a pillow," Hermes said summoning one out of nowhere. "I'll go out for a walk. Have fun."<br>"Wait! Arghhh... I can't believe this!"

He threw the pillow Hermes gave him hard on the sofa. Even after his success the treatment he was receiving was no different, so he had the right to complain. Nobu and Nagi had occupied his room with no hesitation, they should at least try to look a bit sorry. He had the only leisure he had so far taken away easier than someone would steal candy from a kid.

While he was engaged in his favorite hobby, to wilt in a long monologue of self-pity, Nobu and Nagi announced that they were going out for a stroll to get used to the area. He couldn't care less; he didn't even bother to say "see you", he was not pleased about the situation and he was ready to show it by any means.

But, since everyone had left, it was his chance to relax in peace. He took an orange from the fruit ball, determined to please his hunger and then take a nap.

"Humans have a great appetite. Their hunger never stops... Whether they are craving for food or for wealth and fame," he heard a deep voice right beside him.

There was a man with long black hair. His eyes were so dark that you couldn't tell the iris from the pupil. He was sitting with his legs crossed, his hands were resting on his knees. Tohru had frozen. He didn't respond to his words, but one thing was definite. That man was a god, otherwise he wouldn't be able to appear out of nowhere. Unless we was a very skilled burglar, but would a burglar appear in front of a resident of the house he had broken into to discuss the desires of humankind?

"Whoever you are, no matter what your plans are, couldn't you let me eat this damn orange first?" he finally said.  
>"You are an amusing one," he said, the tone of his voice showed no amusement however. "Humans say that Thanatos comes without notice," he smirked.<br>"Thanatos?"  
>"I wonder if Death sounds more familiar to you," he retorted.<br>"You are Thanatos?" Tohru stood up immediately and checked him out from tip to toe.  
>"I think I introduced myself already. What's the point of asking twice?" the man asked titling his head.<br>"...Does this mean that you are here to take me away?" he asked raising an eyebrow.  
>"You are searching for Hermes, I suppose,"<p>

The man responded with no emotion. "Yes and no. I see that you have no manners, young one."

"So, you came here... to talk about my manners?"

Thanatos stood up without warning and crossed his hands behind his back. Tohru could not let him out of his eyes.

"I heard that Hermes tries to sabotage the game."  
>"What if he does?" Tohru asked sighing.<br>"It's not forbidden by the rules so I have no right to act.," he said and touched Tohru's laptop. "Humans create amusing things. They get so entangled with them that they forget to live before they die..."  
>"You came here just to warn us, I guess. How kind of you. Maybe you should relay your warning yourself, because <em>my dear Master<em> hardly listens to what I have to say."  
>"Your actions are not my responsibility," he said while he was checking out the room. "I am not here to warn you, neither to ask you for a deal. Not many things amuse me, I have to say. I find humans to be the most boring and yet the most interesting of them all. So when Lord Hades asked me personally if I wanted to serve as his pawn in these days, I had no motive to accept but no reason to deny the invitation as well."<br>"Well, I, instead, find other humans annoying, especially when they are not letting me do my job in peace, so I can't say I agree. Please don't touch my laptop!"  
>"I see," Thanatos said smirking. "Then I suppose that you understand my feelings," he said leaning over him. "I don't care about this game, but I don't plan to embarrass myself in front of Lord Hades and I will use any means to achieve that."<br>"No, I can't understand you perfectly. Unlike you, I can't say that I respect my master so much. Which kind of puts you in a disadvantage."  
>"How so?" Thanatos asked titling his head to show his surprise.<br>"I can use any means as well, even those which will probably embarrass my master... unlike you."

Thanatos started at him for a couple of minutes without saying anything. That crept the hell out of the young apprentice but he didn't dare to avert his eyes. The god of Death finally formed a smirk, an even creepier that the last ones and then let a husky laugh. He could swear for a second that those would be his last moments but Thanatos just smirked again.

"I see now. An almost perfect match that is. I wonder what would Lord Hades think about that declaration. I feel that it would be safer to dispose of you right now, but that would be just boring. You don't appear to be much of a fighter, you wouldn't last a second..." and since Tohru just stared at him with no response he continued. "Young one, describe death in one word."  
>"Indiscriminate," he replied.<p>

Thanatos stared at him again. That long a pause did he make, he was making Tohru feel uneasy, yet he didn't regret his answer. That was the first answer which popped in his mind.

"I'm looking forward to the moment you will come after us. Lord Hades' apprentice may be a suitable opponent for you, Hermes' apprentice. That's a farewell for now."  
>"Hold on, how am I supposed to find you, if I were to come after you right now?"<br>"I'm Thanatos, boy," he smirked. "You can find me everywhere, whether I'm considered painful, sudden, unavoidable or well-received. Never forget that humans are foolish and they will forever be."

Thanatos disappeared with those words, letting Tohru behind frozen stiff. The words of the grim man put him in thoughts, as he was replaying the whole scene in his mind over and over again.

By the time Hermes, Nobu and Nagi returned home, he was sulking on the couch.

"Tohru, what's the matter?" Nobu asked.  
>"He is mumbling something again and again," Nagi said.<br>"A penny for your thoughts, Tohru," Hermes said.  
>"It's unfair!" he jumped on his feet. "It's <em>so<em> unfair!"  
>"Hey, relax, what happened?" Nobu blinked.<br>"Thanatos was here!"  
>"Thanatos?" Hermes asked surprised. "Thanatos was here? How... Why?"<br>"By Thanatos... you mean the god of death?" Nagi asked in disbelief.  
>"Are you ok?" Hermes asked politely thinking that his apprentice was about to snap.<br>"Of course I am OK!" he said throwing a pillow aside. "You know why? Because I didn't have a normal conversation since... I even I don't remember when! Why does Hades' apprentice, who I don't even know, gets to work with Thanatos as a subordinate while I'm stuck here? It's unfair!" he said putting on his shoes. "I'm going for a walk," he shouted slamming the door behind him.

"Having a conversation with Thanatos, finding it pleasant, and then complain for not having the luck to work with him... Kids, that's what we call a problematic child..." Hermes commented dumbstruck by Tohru's outburst.

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><p><strong>Beta by<strong> Fallen Angel Itachi (Thank you as always)


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